In 2008, the school opened its doors to refugee children when Sacred Heart College started the three2six programme aimed at offering hope.
The programme offers academic and social bridging into the South African schooling system and also aims to offer protective factors that can build resilience and reduce vulnerability.
The project has offered the children a sense of belonging, a positive school environment, an opportunity for success and a non-violent environment that allows them to be children.
The programme offers interim primary school education from grade R to 5, for children who have been refused access to state schools.
“The Three2Six project makes use of unused classrooms when the normal school day has ended – hence the name of the project, which refers to the time when the project operates, namely from 3pm to 6pm.
“The aim is to help de-schooled and marginalised children to make the transition to mainstream schooling, to adjust academically and to the local school culture. The project uses qualified and experienced teachers from the refugee and immigrant community.
“These teachers are carefully mentored in the South African curriculum by the host school,” said marketing co-ordinator, Mrs Lynn Walker.
The project also offers employment for refugee teachers, mentorship and training for the refugee teachers, immunisation for the children and their siblings, skills training and support for parents and advocacy with the local Department of Education to accept children once they are school ready.
“No child deserves to be deprived of education, which was one of the reasons why we started the project. This project is an instant relief for the refugee children from uncertainty and hardship.
“These children find themselves in these situations and they did not ask for this. The parents also hope for a better future for them. The model fits perfectly into the ethos of a caring school. This project has also benefited our pupils as they have been afforded the opportunity to be exposed to a rich variety of cultures” said Mrs Walker.
The three2six project not only feeds the mind, but also the soul and body.
“The children are given school uniforms, a meal a day, safe transport, holiday activities and where needed, psychological support. All of this helps to build the sense of belonging and safety that is so desperately needed by these children,” added Mrs Walker.
The project has benefited the school and it is evident with the students who are always willing to help in fundraising for the three2six project to assist with the pupils’ needs.
This year, the three2six project has been nominated for the Business and Arts South Africa (BASA) awards. BASA is a bridge between the business and arts sectors to help each achieve optimal benefits from partnership.
“There are 11 catagerories and three2six is one of the finalists for the Increasing Access to the Arts Award category for the musical theatre project. The project was done last year for the holiday programme. The children had to write, compose, choreograph and stage a musical theatre production. This holiday programme is an extramural that runs in the mornings during school holidays. It exposes the children to skills not normally covered in their short, three-hour day. The one component of the holiday programme is always an arts programme,”said Mrs Walker.
