Residential Care
To read more about our programs select the relevant program above.
Children don't care how much you know - they need to know how much you care
The Place of Restoration is the Interim Shelter of Give a Child a Family which provides children with holistic restorative care. The shelter becomes their home for the period that investigations are done to find their parents, extended biological family, or to match them with suitable foster parents. The Interim Shelter, which has been identified as a model of excellence, can accommodate 54 children at any time. When a child is reunited with family or placed within a foster family, space immediately becomes available for another child to be assisted. Approximately 100 - 108 children are assisted each year.
The reason for admission of each child is different and unique and their length of stay depends on the child’s individual circumstances. The period of stay can be from a few weeks up to 12 months but is usually between 3 -6 months.
On admission each child is allocated to a careworker ("Aunty") who is primarily responsible for the wellbeing of the child. There are however many other hands, staff from other departments and International Volunteers, who assist and help to make children feel loved and secure.
Our most important task is for children to know and feel that they are special and that their lives are significant! The Restorative Care Programs deal with the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of children.
For further details please contact Charmaine Wagenaar at charmaine@gcf.org.za
Social Work Liaison Office
The Shelter Social Worker liaise with Community and other Social Workers who have placed children at the shelter. Ongoing collaboration ensures that the reason for admission of every child is thoroughly investigated to establish if reunification with parents of family is in the best interest of the child or if the child can be adopted or placed with a new family.
A multi-disciplinary team, the Shelter Social Worker, Teacher, Nurse, Therapist and Childcare Worker, monitors the Individual Care Plan for each child .
Once all investigations have been completed and a child is ready to be placed in Foster Care, the child is prepared for the family visits. This process which starts with a first anonymous visit , allows the child the opportunity to detach from the significant people at the shelter and ensures a smooth transition into the family.
For further details please contact Kirsty Jones at kirsty@gcf.org.za