Khayalethu Youth Centre

ABOUT US

SERVICES

K1 programmes

The programmes at the Centre are designed to promote holistic and positive development for all our boys. The programmes are aligned with the norms and standards as well as expectations of the Children’s Act, Act 38/2005 as amended.

Currently we facilitate 7 programmes to ensure all aspects of development are adressed:

• Health, hygiene and nutrition Programme
• School Programme [includes home work class, extra classes]
• Sport Programme
• Community Service Programme
• Therapeutic Programme
• Drama, Dance, Art and Spiritual Programme
• Family Reunification Programme

Oliver House

The Khayalethu Oliver House (known as K2) was established in 2007 and provides an opportunity for those Khayalethu boys who have completed their formal schooling to extend their stay for a period of time, in order to better prepare for the workplace and life outside of Khayalethu.

Part of our strength in the success of the Khayalethu Oliver House has been to align ourselves with reputable and caring businesses such as Ocean Divers International, Haenco Engineering, APS Connections, TNT Express, Parmalat, Total Shopfitters, and Atlas Security. It is imperative that companies build a relationship with Khayalethu over time in order for them to want to invest in the future of our young men at Khayalethu Oliver House. Companies such as those already mentioned give a hand up to these young men, rather than a handout – a much more important role in society!

Our heartfelt thanks go out to Oliver Foundation and the businesses in Port Elizabeth, who are willing to invest of their time, training, resources and finances over as much as a three year apprenticeship training period.

It is our firm belief, that with the right education from caring businesses and individuals such as these, our young men will integrate and sustain themselves and their future families in a responsible and educated manner

Strong Foundations

At the time of placement few of our newly admitted boys are ready to be placed directly into the formal school system. They have often dropped out of school, not necessarily due to lack of potential, but because of their inabilty to bridge the huge academic/cognitive gaps without the help they need. Along with these academic challenges come physical and emotional challenges which form additional barriers to learning. This means that the boys are often much older yet less able to cope than their school going peers and this leads to high levels of frustration for both the child and the educators. The boys therefore need to receive bridging and/or remedial education on an individually appropriate level, allowing them to master the foundation skills needed to progress at school.

There was thus an urgent need for an effective alternative which addresses the root of the problem and enables the boy to become school ready before attempting placement in a formal school. The Strong Foundations School programme was launched during January 2014 and has since grown in its policies, procedures as well as add-on support services.

Goals:

• Boys are assessed and enrolled for the Programme on admission, in line with their IDP. ( Individual Development Plan)
• The Programme follow the CAPS curriculum (currently used in the school system)
• The Programme can be accelerated according to the boys’ ability, with the aim to place the boy successfully in a formal school – This process could take up to 2 years
• The classes are kept small, with an initial group of up to 10 learners.
• The Programme aims to encourage self discipline, punctuality, neatness, personal hygiene, communication skills, foundational academic skills in literacy, numeracy, computer skills, reading and comprehension and creative arts to address challenges and remediate as far as possible
• The Programme aims to assess the boys regularly to allow them to progress through the different levels with the 2 year goal of placement within a suitable formal schooling option.

The learners within this programme are taught by a qualified teacher (Mrs. Sue Grant), go on regular school outings and trips, receive weekly group counseling (UCLIN) as well as robotics classes (Mrs. Natasha Saunders).

Khayalethu Coffee Challenge

We thought we’d let you know how many cups have been given in Khayalethu’s Summer Coffee Challenge.

2040!

With all those cups, we were able to:

• Register our boys at school,
• Provide them with school clothes, textbooks and stationery, and
• Get them to their nine different schools every morning.

With this great success, we've decided to extend the Give A Cup Campaign

Next, we hope to provide the Khayalethu boys with:

• Toiletries,
• Cleaning materials, and
• The medicines we need to keep everyone healthy through winter.

If you’d like to give up a cuppa, put a debit order in place before 15 May 2017 to enter. The draw will take place and the winner notified before 31 May 2017.

If you give a cup, you get a chance to win

We awarded the first Give A Cup prize at the end of February 2017. And we’ll soon be announcing a new prize. Please download a debit order form or use these banking details when you give a cup. Get yourself in line to win!

• Name of Account:ACVV Port Elizabeth Sentraal KHAYALETHU YOUTH CENTRE
• Name of Bank: ABSA PE North End
• Branch Code: 632005
• Account Number: 164 015 63 64
• SWIFT CODE: ABSA ZA JJ (use spaces)

We’ll keep you posted on how many cups have been given and – more importantly – how they’ve helped Khayalethu. Give uppa cuppa and see how far a cuppa kindness goes.

For regular updates, please subscribe to our newsletter on the form below.

Venue Hire

Our home is open to you!

Khayalethu Youth Centre offers a large, fully-fenced swimming pool; a gazebo; braai and kitchen facilities; a fire pit and much more. Situated on Kragga Kamma Road, Khayalethu is a retreat from the city (without your having to travel too far).

There’s so much space! The kids can enjoy working off their energies on the soccer field or in the pool, while moms and dads relax in the shady gazebo.

Wish List

History is being made in the life of the ACVV Khayalethu Youth Centre and we feel very privileged to be part of the story! Of course with changes come challenges. The bigger the change, the bigger the challenge. We would never have the courage to embark on this journey without the help of our sponsors, old and new.

The ACVV Khayalethu Youth Centre is a children’s home for boys who come from extremely difficult backgrounds and because of sad circumstances have spent time out of school and on the streets. These boys are not eligible for other children’s homes, but with positive intervention at the right time, can and often do, turn their lives around when they make use of the many opportunities offered to them at the Khayalethu Youth Centre.

Since the miracle of the move from our previous premises in North End to the new property in Theescombe, we have experienced many answered prayers and wishes as we have settled in to make this our new home.

I would like to take this opportunity to bring our latest WISH LIST to your attention and hope that in some way, you will be able to help us to make these a reality.

Some big projects:

• A strong, sturdy playground gym (R35 000)
• Roundabout
• Slide
• Swimming pool cover (6.35 metres by 25 metres)
• A new house for the Khayalethu Oliver House Project (R850 000)
• Cycle Programme: We have 15 bicycles, but these need ongoing maintenance (R20 000)
• A new vehicle to transport the boys (R380 000)
• One portable seating stands for sports events
• Two, large, top loader washing machines
• Five metal trestle tables
• 40 plastic chairs
• 2 x big Jo Jo Tanks (R5 000 each)
• 35 x single bed mattresses
• Paving around the office and house
• Small building projects: mend leaking roof, guttering for awning, shelter for recycling project with cement slab and roof, paint for bathrooms, etc.

Housing project:

In order to become financially self-sustainable in the future, we are working on a building project, consisting of 15 two-bedroomed housing units to be built on our grounds at a cost of R400 000 each. This would generate a substantial monthly rental income of R5 500 each, and would go a long way towards offsetting our running costs. Ideally we would like companies or individuals to sponsor a unit, which will be named after them and be an ongoing benefit to the company and to Khayalethu. We already have 2 units sponsored by local companies!

Other, more general needs:

These include a variety of items like food, clothing, toiletries and cleaning materials. Any donation will be appreciated. This list has been compiled to give people an idea of our ongoing needs:

Clothing:

• 35 pairs of jeans
• 35 pairs of takkies /sneakers
• 35 pairs of underwear
• 35 pairs of socks
• 35 warm tops/hoodies
• 35 pairs of sweatpants
• The clothing needs of the boys amount to around R15 000 per year and school clothes about R 8000.

Monthly toiletry requirements (around R1000 per month):

• 35 toothpaste
• 35 roll-on deodorants
• 35 spray deodorants
• 35 toilet soaps
• 6 pots of Vaseline
• 70 toilet paper rolls

Cleaning materials (around R1000 per month):

Bleach, cleaning liquid, dishwashing liquid, Jeyes Fluid, insecticide sprays, laundry soap, washing powder, steel wool, sponges, cloths, etc.

Other necessities:

• Gas for the stove (R800 per month)
• Water and electricity (R11 000 per month)
• Karate programme (R4 000 per month)
• Tools, equipment and maintenance (R2 000 per month)

Programmes that make a big difference:

• Sponsor a Child in Khayalethu (R300 per month. Used for extra expenses for the child, like school tours, extra mural activities, special learning needs, etc.)
• Sponsor a Child in Khayalethu (R500 per month. This is used to cover basic needs. We do not get a subsidy for older boys.)
• Phakamisa Project. This is aimed at paying for skills courses and especially a Learner’s and Driver’s Licence for the older residents of the Khayalethu Oliver House programme. (Between R3 000 and R5 000 per person, depending on the duration of course.)
• Strong Foundations School: Teacher’s salary – R7 000 per month. (We offer inhouse schooling to several boys who are unable to attend mainline schools.)

Sport’s Equipment:

• Soccer balls (R150 each)
• Cricket Kit
• Toys for smaller boys

Monetary donations:

Any monetary donations are used for the needs of the boys, unless otherwise directed. At present our monthly running costs amount to about R176 986, of which the Department of Social Development subsidy covers only R63 528. This does not even cover the basics and leaves us with a monthly shortfall of R113 458 per month which must be raised by means of donations and sponsorships.

The Khayalethu Youth Centre is a project of the ACVV which is a registered Public Benefit Organisation (PBO) with the South African Revenue Services. The PBO registration number is 9300 6889. This means that all donations are tax deductible both personally and for business.

Please ensure that you receive a receipt from us, which you can pass on to your accountant and tax advisor. This will help you pay less tax!

Another advantage of donating is that it will enable a good BEE rating for your business. BEE consists of 7 different aspects that the government aims for all business to focus on. One of these is Corporate Social Investment (code 700 and 1700). This includes all donations made to social causes, especially those which benefit education, housing and welfare. You could score as much as 20% towards your BEE rating by supporting Khayalethu.

Our banking details are as follows:

• Name of Account: ACVV Port Elizabeth Sentraal KHAYALETHU YOUTH CENTRE
• Name of Bank: ABSA PE NORTH END, P.O.Box 577, Port Elizabeth, 6000
• Branch code: 632005
• Account number: 16401 56364
• Swift code: ABSA ZA JJ CPE (use spaces)

Should you have any questions or need further information, please contact me – Dr Marietjie van der Merwe, Director of Khayalethu – on the following numbers: 041 4845667 0r 072 278 8787.