Volunteer now for a minimum of 4 weeks to help care for underprivileged children in Cape Town, South Africa. Emerging from its apartheid history South Africa’s townships are poverty stricken and HIV AIDS ravaged with many children left orphaned and vulnerable. Volunteer on this project to assist these children. Based at one of the project’s child care centers you may help with hands-on teaching, organising activities, caring for the children, arranging food, assessing needs, developing the center and more.

Your Role as Volunteer

As a volunteer, you may be working in a para-parental role teaching children life skills that their missing or overwhelmed families are struggling with. At the crèches and orphanage you may work with a local care giver or teacher assisting them and taking on responsibilities as your skills and experience allows. In general you may play three different roles:

1. Teaching – The children at the care points are generally without any kind of education and need the foundations of English.

2. Care giving – Most of the children come from homes where they do not receive much attention; volunteers play an important role in giving the children this attention, playing games with them, teaching them basic life skills and giving them the care and attention they need at that age.

3. Centre development – Volunteers are often involved with painting educational murals, organizing fundraising events, taking children to the play ground and working on income generating projects.

There are many other activities that you as a volunteer might like to get involved in; sports (start a small sport program for the kids), art projects, music and singing songs (bring an instrument and teach some kids to play), and various other community initiatives (e.g. recycling, craft development). Wherever you feel your strengths lie is where you should get involved – use your own creativity and work together with your project leader and the caregivers at the care point.

Project Information

This project involves working with a number of small care centers and crèches in the Imizamo Yethu township of Cape Town. There are a large number of crèches and day care centers in Imizamo Yethu as well as an orphanage that is understaffed, under-funded, and whose facilities are in great need of work and attention. These projects aim to provide care and education for disadvantaged children, many of whom have broken families as a result of poverty and the AIDS pandemic. Some of these are basic rooms attached to small houses others are more organized and developed. All are in need of support.

Orientation

Your orientation will start with a presentation by the project co-ordinator to prepare you for your project. You will then be shown around Hout Bay, Cape Town and go on a Township tour through Imizamo Yethu.

Accommodation and Transfer

You will be based in the Hout Bay, not far from the Angel Starfish crèche. Your sea-view accommodation is walking distance to convenience stores, restaurants, nightlife, and a short drive to Cape Town’s City Centre. In your spare time (you will have more than enough), you can shop, sightsee, or simply sunbathe on one of Africa’s premiere beaches.

An airport transfer on set arrival and departure days is inclusive of the package.

Guidance and Supervision

Your day will be spent alongside a trained crèche teacher. The volunteer program will be supervised by the principal of Angel Starfish, Feroza Moses, who will be more than happy to assist you throughout your visit. Besides this will there also be volunteer coordinators that can be reached 24 hours a day.

A typical week at Angel Starfish…

Although day to day activities vary on the project, a typical day in the life of a volunteer might be:

07:30 – Wake up and have breakfast.

08:00 – Walk over to your project.

08:30 – Children start arriving at the school from 08.30.

09:00 – School starts.

13:00 – Lunch (come back to volunteer house for lunch or take a packed lunch).

14:00 – You will help with playing activities at your project or you can help on an afternoon project.

15:30 – Work generally ends around 3.30pm but this is flexible and can sometimes be earlier and sometimes later.

You will be off in the weekends which leaves you with plenty of time to explore South Africa further.

Costs & Inclusive / Exclusive

4 weeks           ZAR 18,175.-

6 weeks           ZAR 22,310.-

8 weeks           ZAR 25,795,-

10 weeks         ZAR 29,770.-

Contact one of our travel specialists now for the costs of additional weeks.

Inclusive

• All accommodation throughout your programme
• All meals
• Orientation upon arrival
• Airport transfer on set arrival and departure days
• Full support and daily guidance from the project coordinator/tour guide
• Project equipment/materials
• Backup support from projects / Share Africa head office and administrative staff

Exclusive

• Personal travel insurance for the duration of your placement
• All flights
• Airport transfers not on set arrival and departure days
• Local transport costs to and from project placements
• All items of a personal nature, such as curios, gifts, clothing (work and other)
• Telephone, internet, extra food and drinks, weekend activities
• Visas
• Any excursions over and above your planned itinerary

NOTE: Where possible, Share Africa Travel can assist volunteers to arrange extra/optional activities/trips during free time on their projects and expeditions. Please remember that on such occasions, should you decide to take accommodation other than that provided at the project/expedition site, you will be responsible for the costs thereby incurred.

Arrival dates

The standard arrival dates (first Monday of the month) for the project is:
2013: 7-Jan, 4-Feb, 4-Mar, 1- Apr,6-May, 3-Jun, 1-Jul,5-Aug, 2-Sep, 7-Oct, 4-Nov

Volunteering at this project starts from a minimum of 4 weeks.

Please read our terms and conditions to inform yourself about our booking procedures.
Kindly note that the prices and accommodation are subject to change based on date, availability and special requests.