With a deep sense of pride in our Girls and Boys Town SA youth, I reflect on their academic achievements from last year. As the results were received and analysed, we are celebrating that 88% of our 110 GBTSA residents who wrote exams passed their subjects. Several among them were rewarded with life-changing opportunities in acknowledgement of their resilience and ability to apply themselves to their goals despite the harshest of circumstances that brought them to GBTSA. The wonder of managing to adapt, change, learn and thrive once a different, nurturing structure is provided after having to endure physical and psychological trauma, perhaps for a long time, is the 67-year-old story of Girls and Boys Town.

The Girls and Boys Town South Africa story

We are a place of healing and nurturing for vulnerable children who are placed into residential care at one of our four campuses by the Children’s Court. Nearly all of them have reached their early teens having seen and experienced how tough life can be. The disadvantaged communities and battered families most of them come from shape their lived realities, frequently leading to exposure to abuse, pain and crime in foundational years.

This makes their positive and successful response to the Girls and Boys Town environment and programme that much more meaningful and impactful. It also offers invaluable lessons and best practices about holistic care for vulnerable youth, including academics that can be adapted and amplified to lift many other disadvantaged children and families from their unfortunate and limiting present contexts.

As we work with both the children and their families to strengthen their life skills and provide necessary resources as effectively, efficiently and comprehensively as possible, the majority of the GBTSA youth – approximately 200 each year – temporarily reside with us and attend the most appropriate nearby schools. In that time, the GBTSA teams evaluate, create and implement holistic programmes with a focus on health, socialisation and education, which are tailored to each child. In addition, GBTSA staff and social workers engage with the child’s principal caregiver and family to provide more sustainable and broader assistance that can fortify the child’s home environment and facilitate a positive, quick reintegration into the family and community. Not all children go back into a family setting, some go on to live independently but with on-going support from GBTSA. We try to help each child establish a network of support.

The business case for education from an early age

I am heartened by the recent indications that the National Treasury will increase the budget allocation for early childhood education (ECD). This is part of the government’s bigger strategy to fortify education from an early age in recognition of the longer term benefits for South Africa’s socioeconomic trajectory.

At GBTSA, we recognise that each youth’s educational journey is different, although given the experiences of our young residents, the fact that they overwhelmingly come from impoverished neighbourhoods means that they largely did not have access to ECD. By focusing on the children’s early foundational years and education, we are certain to recognise and, as a nation,n advance from their social and academic performance and wellbeing a few years later. If increased attention is afforded to ECD and this results in the government’s estimated 700,000 under-five children benefitting from ECD, it will have a manifold positive impact on millions of South Africans, including the children’s siblings, family and social circles.

Overcoming obstacles to seize opportunities

The primary reasons for children being placed into residential care facilities such as Girls and Boys Town entail domestic violence, physical abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, intergenerational socio-economic deprivation/poverty, parents using substances, parents unable to care for the material and emotional needs of children, parent absenteeism and mental health challenges.

Once the adolescent youth are allocated by the authorities to one of our centres, most of them need academic assistance. For that reason, all the GBTSA campuses have Learning Resource Centres with learning assistance staff trained to offer remedial assistance and support to youth applying recognised programmes and approaches.

Within this context of rising above and achieving despite multiple and complex difficulties with which our youth arrived at GBTSA last year, I am honoured to share their wonderful successes.