The need to care for children is the cornerstone of Ikamva Labantu's mission. Our focus is to build the capacity of affiliated carers to enhance the care of orphans and vulnerable children. Carers under the Family Support Services Initiative are:
Foster Parents
Foster Parents ( Magnificent Mothers / Fathers ) adopt orphaned children from their community and provide them with stable and caring homes. The aim of our Family Support Service is to enable foster families to access social service grants, exemptions from school fees, establish peer support groups and achieve supportive self-sufficiency. As a result of foster children's unique situations (many of whom lack the necessary birth certificate and registration documents), accessing their legal right to social services and childcare grants often becomes a long and complicated process. Until a grant is attained for each family, Ikamva Labantu sources funding to provide monthly stipends, school fees, supplies, uniforms and food to foster families based on the number of children they care for who do not receive grants. Magnificent Mothers / Fathers are further equipped to address the mounting challenges such as HIV/Aids/TB and socio-economic conditions in their homes and communities.
| Staff: | 7 |
|---|---|
| Volunteers / Carers: | 28 |
| Foster Homes: | 28 |
| Children: | 350 |
| Areas Served: | Blue Downs, Eerste River, Gugulethu, Khayelitsha, Langa, Phillipi, Phillipi East, Nyanga |
Community Angels
Community Angels nurture unsupported children who live with parents or families who cannot provide them with adequate care. Community Angels identify children in their communities who live with parents who suffer from HIV/Aids or other diseases, child-headed families, frail grandparents and / or others who are in socially and economically challenged situations. They provide food, basic care, schooling support, and assistance with grant applications, household supervision and basic home-based care. Ikamva Labantu strives to keep children within their own families as long as possible.
| Staff: | 7 |
|---|---|
| Volunteers / Carers: | 34 |
| Children: | 500 |
| Areas Served: | Blue Downs, Eerste River, Gugulethu, Khayelitsha, Langa, Phillipi, Phillipi East, Nyanga |
Home-based carers
Home-based carers travel throughout the communities, supporting vulnerable families by providing nursing and palliative care, home support and basic amenities including food and medical supplies. They also assist with grant applications and other necessary administrative tasks. Home-based carers also provide their services to Magnificent Mothers / Fathers and Community Angels.
| Staff: | 3 |
|---|---|
| Volunteers: | 8 |
| Carers: | 10 |
| Patients: | 150 |
| Areas Served: | Dunoon, Joe Slovo, Phillipi, Khayelitsha |
Under the Family Support Services initiative, Magnificent Mothers / Fathers, Community Angels and Home-based carers work collaboratively in "high-risk" contexts. The initiative coordinates their services within a single Department, thereby ensuring a closer relationship among them, widening their network and improving their access to and delivery of services. Collectively, they provide communities with HIV/Aids prevention, counselling, care and referrals to Voluntary Counselling and Testing, clinics and support groups.