Thanks to your support a new dimension to our activity in Chennai has been launched: Satkaarya’s wraparound care programme.
Wraparound care is provided for needy children whose home environment is chaotic, unstable and often even dangerous.
These children are impoverished and malnourished and also face the risk of being victims of all kinds of abuse, including substance abuse. Such children are identified by our social worker, Mr Peters, who has good experience in dealing with parents in difficult situations and convincing them to send their children to school.
How does it work?
The children attend local Little Lambs School in the day and are then dropped off at our wraparound care centre. The children spend four hours at the centre where they are washed and cleaned, fed nutritious snacks and meals and then given the necessary holistic educational support. The evening is organised in such a way so as to accommodate physical exercise, yoga, sports, recreational games, art activities, with some literacy and numeracy. The little boys and girls are also taught basic hygiene, proper eating habits and values while managing behaviour in a positive manner.
The outcome
Currently eight children are attending the wraparound programme. There is scope for more to join in. The success of the programme is that the children are eager to attend school regularly and want to come to the care centre every day. Another highlight of the programme is that the older girls at the Satkaarya home are able to participate in caring for these children. Thanks to the core team of staff who are very dedicated and have made this initiative possible, Batemans-Satkaarya will be able to expand the work to many more vulnerable children.
The picture above shows three of the children who are benefiting from the programme: Muthalagu and her brothers Surya and Pechumuthu.
Below are a few more pictures of children involved in the programme.