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Rob Smetherham Bereavement Services

 

Name of Organisation: Rob Smetherham Bereavement Service for Children (RSBSC)
Physical Address: 7th Floor Gallwey House, 15 Gallwey Lane, PMB 3200
Postal Address: Postnet Suite H46, P/Bag X9118, Pietermaritzburg, 3200
Telephone No.: 033 345 3729/033 345 3764
Fax No.: 033 345 3789/0865172525
E-mail Address: admin@rsbsc.co.za

Website Address: None

What We Do: Psychosocial Support to Bereaved Children and Families, training and mentoring others to increase effective emotional support to bereaved children they work with through their programs, activities and services (CBO's, FBO's NGO's etc).

Geographical Reach: Rural Communities in and around PMB - Currently working in the Elandskop area PMB and surrounds with local strategic partners (many CINDI members). Nationally through our strategic partners. Internationally through our strategic partners (mostly Sub Saharan Africa).

Vision

  • Safe loving spaces for Children are created and held by every member of the community and children are given full permission to be children and play.
  • The people in communities have the courage to own and take reponsibility for what takes place within their community and seek together to find their own solutions
  • A strong sense of belonging is nurtured at every level of the community
  • A spirit of interconnectedness and Ubuntu is restored and what people believe in is actively lived
  • People believe in themselves and each other and take charge of their lives.  They know the pathways to journey that will lead to support, knowledge, resources, accountability and ultimate sustainablity.  The solution comes from within
  • People are in a constant conversation with each other.  They listen and creatively respond to strengthen and maintain a healty environment for all

Mission

To bring hope and healing to bereaved children, their care-givers, families and other caring community members through therapeutic play interventions in communities affected by death and loss

We do this by strengthening the community response in taking care of bereaved children by working in partnerships with organisations that serve children in communities

Aims

  1. To create awareness in the greater community (stakeholders, counsellors, chiefs, pastors, schools, SGB's, clinics, CBO's) regarding the needs of bereaved children
  2. To provide therapy counselling for bereaved children especially those affected by AIDS
  3. To provide play therapy support to families and adults in these children's lives
  4. To educate and train community members who have a passion for children to meet the emotional needs of bereaved children
  5. To scale up this intervention, we teach and train partner organisations to provide direct support to bereaved children and in turn to be able to train others to do the same
  6. To enable community members to establish links with organisations, potential partners and government who in turn will be able to respond with material support so that interventions will be sustained long term

 CINDI cluster/working groups we belong to:

  • Psychosocial Support Cluster
  • Strategic Thinking Cluster

 Limitations to services: Our own direct work with children is limited to set targets per year as our focus is on developing the skills of others to reach out to children. We use direct work as a way of training and developing others. We do not provide material support.

Times and Days of operation of the service: Mon-Fri

Costs of the service: Services offered to communities for free. Training of strategic partners free. Ad hoc requests for training to any other organisation at cost. Organisations trained pay their own accommodation and travel costs.

Support documentation needed in order to access the service: None.