Help Kenyan children with disabilities into school

As I write this report, I am making plans for my forthcoming trip to visit our DCC partners and the disability school at Athi. I am delighted that I will be travelling with the HATW Executive Officer, David Steiner, who will be staying in Maua for a week before he travels on to visit other HATW projects in Zambia.

It is several years since I last visited the DCC and Athi school, so I am looking forward to seeing the recent developments. I am hoping to see the new therapy room at Athi school in use, with the children having access to regular therapy on site. Also, the improvements to the DCC workshop, including the upgraded power supply, should mean I see significant changes there. Our visit will enable us to evaluate progress and identify new development areas going forward.

During our visit, we hope to meet with the Disability Centre manager, Oliver, and the DCC staff team, as well as with Esther and the teaching team at the school. We hope to consolidate the plans for building the classroom block at the school (the money is now available).

The water supply to the school is still a problem – though piped water is available locally, the school still manages with only two standpipes for the children’s use; washroom facilities that have been in place for some years are still not connected to a regular water supply. We hope to be able to prompt local discussions and solutions to address this ongoing problem.

The 2015 annual report for the DCC has been published and identifies the good work which is continuing through the work of the staff team. This includes direct work with over a thousand children from the surrounding community. There is also wider support through 3280 mothers involved in 164 self-help groups (promoted by DCC), positively impacting a huge number of children in the local community.

The work of the DCC to support children with disabilities continues through:

• Direct referrals

• Playgroups Centre-based assessment, therapy and the provision of mobility aids

• Home based follow up Community outreach clinics and school linked support

Identified challenges going forward at the DCC include:

• insufficient staffing, for which ongoing funding is still being sought;

• the continuing need to effectively educate and inform families and the local community, to ensure that children with disabilities are identified early and receive appropriate help.

What can you offer by way of help?

We place skilled volunteers with partner projects for 3 weeks to 3 months to share their expertise and encourage the local staff.

We also look for funding partners, who are willing to sponsor initiatives like classroom building or financing the water supply to the school.

Contact info@hatw.org.uk for more information or to arrange a volunteering visit; or donate directly to making a difference in the lives of children living with health challenges who attend Athi Special school.