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Kenya is a leading holiday destination with millions of tourists visiting every year to see the wildlife on display and to relax on one of many stunning beaches the country has to offer.

Do you Want To Help The Less Fortunate Among Us?
The Special School is situated in the lush, hilly landscape area of The Kenyan Central Highlands, in a town called Nyeri. It is 3 hour drive from the city of Nairobi in what is called the bread basket of Kenya. The scenery is amazing and one is awed by the hills and the vast greenery with coffee and tea farms around every corner. The school was started as a special unit in 1988 with the noble idea having been born from the local community with a strong will in assisting the then growing number of children with special needs. Through donations from various organisations they constructed a small home for the pupils who were walking long distances every day to school. Originally the children used to attend regular school and as a result were not able to get the specialised education that they needed. The school was completed in 1994, with the help of donors and with emphasis on Father Antonio who within two years had worked very hard to establish it as an independent institution. The intuition currently has over 150 children with different disabilities.

Why The Need For Volunteers?
The centres needs all the support it can get from volunteers to battle this rising problem. We are looking for volunteers with a love for children and more specifically nurses, nutritionists, occupational therapists, social workers & child psychologists. Anyone with a love for children will get on very well at this project and you can see the happiness and joy in the children’s faces when volunteers are there to help them out.

Volunteers Activities
Volunteers will be required to work on an array of different areas within the children’s home. The school is a boarding facility so the kids live here. The morning starts quite early with the kids being taught how to shower, make the beds and help them with their breakfast. They have parades on certain days which are important as it teaches them how to respond to bells and also authority. This is all part of the therapy. The school being a special needs institution has specialised kind of education where the children do not go to regular class but as per the stages of disability. The classes are small and the teachers are able to handle them well. As they are classified there are those whose abilities allow them to learn how to read and write simple words and numbers and thus are taken through a curriculum that has been put down for them. Others are there just for occupational therapy because of their disabilities and as a result go straight to the occupational therapy room. Because a child will stay in the school as long as it takes them to be self-reliable they have older children who are taken through art and crafts’ and it is amazing how well they do it.

Due to different disabilities they have a very well equipped occupational and physiotherapy room where the kids that need it are helped. They offer massage, physiotherapy, play, speech therapy and occupational therapy. This is one of their greatest needy areas as they do not have a resident occupational therapist and have to depend on volunteers and students from the local universities and colleges. Volunteers with these kinds of skills are always very helpful in this area.

Other activities include, cooking for the kids, general cleaning, washing clothes, games and play, gardening as they have a small garden where they grow all their vegetables.

The Required Skills
You must be flexible, use your initiative and have plenty of enthusiasm to face the daily challenges your role will throw at you. A proactive attitude is essential for you and your project to gain the most out of one another. You must use all the skills you have to help enrich your experience and to leave a profound effect on your project. Most importantly it is essential for you to have a love for children and a commitment to the project. Depending on your capabilities and initiative you may find yourself being invited to participate in other events not mentioned in the project specifications.

Local Facilities
Nyeri is one of Kenya’s larger towns and has most amenities you need including banks, post offices and supermarkets. There is a good transport network of local minivans (Matatu’s) as they are locally known, and plenty of taxis

Trip Highlights
You are given the opportunity to gain an experience to live and work in semi-rural Kenya making a difference in the children’s centre and interacting with the local people. You are also a stone’s throw away from Mt Kenya, which is the second highest mountain in Africa.

Duration

No duration restrictions

Start Dates

Any time throughout the year

Requirements

Must be over 18 years of age & have a valid passport which must be valid for at least 6 months upon departure from your project country.