Education Support Programme

From the point of their parent’s arrest, children of prisoners endure a silent sentence of their own. The children of incarcerated offenders are always most affected by the consequences of crime as they face difficult living situations and are at high risk for developmental and behavioral problems. Children of the incarcerated tend to come from resource poor families and tend to be cared for in families whose resources are compromised by their presence. They are at higher risk to fail at school, to have behaviour problems and to go to prison themselves.

Children who live in poor areas also have limited educational support outside of school.
Some children are expected to assist with domestic chores before and after school. They might even be responsible for taking care of sick relations. In spite of these setbacks, they must remain in school and perform well enough at competitive school-leaving examinations to earn the right of passage to a better way of life. In identifying the great needs of incarcerated offenders’ children and unemployed released offenders’ children our organization implemented the support of education and emotional and spiritual support.

Aim of the Project:

1. Focus on sustaining the education of the child during and after parent/s incarceration by providing the basic immediate needs for the school.
2. Monitor the progress of the child’s education for the period under review.
3. Motivate and offer emotional and spiritual support to the child/children during the school year.
4. Facilitate parent/child visits to correctional centers where possible to encourage/improve relationship growth between parent and child.
5. These beneficiaries were equipped with both summer and winter uniforms. The ages and grades of the children varies and in some instances it is evident that the child has lagged behind academically due to the parent’s circumstance. During stage one of the project our focus was mainly on the children of unemployed released offenders whom we are supporting emotionally and spiritually by the Community Chaplaincy Volunteers. In stage two we reached out to the female and male incarcerated offenders whose children are in the care of grandmothers and other family members or friends. Some of these children live with family outside of the Cape Metropole and the Western Cape Province. We engaged friends and parishioners who reside in those areas to conduct home visits in order to assess that the children are living in areas where the living conditions are conducive. Although these children are not living in our vicinity/region, they benefited from this project since they are the vulnerable target group who have to grow up without one or both parents due to the separation by crime.

Through this project, the organization could realize its vision to create hope in the children and restore a sense of humanity amongst the direct and indirect beneficiaries. Provided children with the necessary tools in order for them to reach their full potential.
Created enthusiasm around the education of the children by diverting their focus from their negative circumstances that they find themselves in daily to their schooling.

Due to the intervention of the project, children displayed a keen interest in their education which is evident in the school reports received.
We received positive feedback from the incarcerated parents who expressed their gratitude towards Prison Care and Support Network for the aid received. Their children’s attitudes towards the parent and their schooling vastly improved due to the support and interest in the child’s progress from PCSN.

If you would like to get involved in any of the projects Contact Us.

Programmes conducted during 2015/16:

Home Based Care Programme:

7 Ladies selected for Home Based Care (HBC).

Programme kicked off on 8 June with 6 weeks of theory and first aid training.
All 7 students completed their 6 weeks of theory and first aid training successfully.
On 20 July they embarked on their 6 weeks of practical training, either day or night duty at Robin Trust Frail Care Centre or Post op rehabilitation Centre depending on the group they were placed in. A total of students successfully graduated from the 7.

Organic Home Gardening:

This programme kicked off on 2 July with our trainees preparing the back yard at Cara House for their project. Margot Neser from Back Area Gardens, Oude Molen agreed to training our clients from 27 July.
Two parolees progressed very well and enjoyed their training.
The garden began to yield crops, first spinach, lettuce and coriander, followed by radish, turnips, tomatoes and red cabbage.
The programme concluding on 29 October with the candidates who were presented with certificates from Back Area Gardens at our Client Gathering on 10 December 2015 and Margot was thanked for her generous nature and great training sessions delivered. The way in which she nurtured and trained the guys, never seeing them as less than her impacted hugely on developing their self confidence. The organic home gardening project equipped two men with horticultural training and practical skills.

Business & Life Skills Programme

Six clients commenced on 4th November and was conducted at Cara House.

The Life Skills for Entrepreneurs programme totals 32 notional hours where participants are expected to participate in all elements of the training.

The Business Skills training programme is a total of 48 notional hours and was conducted by facilitators of both Learn to Earn and Innovate Biz. The growth of some of the participants were quite evident as they interacted well with the facilitators and their peers. The attendance register also speak volumes of the success of this programme.

One of the participants who has a small informal “fish & chip” business grew into a successful profitable business after implementing the learnings of the course in his business. Profit increased from R70 per week to R700 per week. “I am truly grateful to PCSN who offered me the chance to do this course as I gained so much valuable knowledge from it. My business has grown stronger and I have gained confidence as I now have the understanding of how to enhance my business.”

The daily transport fees and meals created a positive impact on all participants as they were able to fully engage in the programme without any hindrance. The only meal that one of our participants had was on the course.

On 4 December all 6 participants graduated after successful completion of the programme. Certificates and business starter packs were issued to the participants who concluded this programme on a very high note.

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