Nomads help Apricot Tree learners with therapy rooms
The rooms are designed for different kinds of therapy.
The Apricot Tree Centre learners will now be able to enjoy the use of three sensory rooms, thanks to the generosity of the Easterns Nomads.
The rooms were officially opened for use by Nomads captain Gavin Adams and the centre’s principal, Abby-Jade Reason, on November 29.
“After the school approached us, we asked them what was their most critical need and the sensory rooms is something they’d been trying to put in place for several years,” an emotional Adams said.
Adams explained that the organisation got involved with the centre because of their love for children.
“It’s a specialised centre that needs special equipment and educational facilities to assist the children in various aspects.”
He added that he hopes the rooms will assist the learners to have an easy and fruitful day as they are now an integral part of the school.
“The main thing is to give them quality of life, which is important to any individual. Even being in a specialised school, whatever quality we can give, these children are important and that’s why we invest in projects like these,” he said.
Painted and lit in different colours and filled with different equipment, occupational therapist Ruby-Lyn Hugo stated that the rooms will offer the learners different kinds of therapy.
“The rooms are designed for different kinds of therapy. One is a gross motor room for those who are wheelchair-bound. We have the hanging equipment to move them around to stimulate all the muscles of the body.
“The second room is for calming them down. If a learner is overstimulated, we put them in there to calm the sensory system. The last room caters for all their visual, audio and gross motor needs,” she said.
Speech therapist Sadiyya Peer and physiotherapist Perla Epstein explained that the rooms are a welcome relief for the learners who often struggle with regulating their emotions while others are bound to their wheelchairs the entire day.
“For me, it’s to provide variety. These rooms allow us to give them something new and different. A variety of positions and senses,” Epstein said.
The school’s chairperson, Errol Treacher, thanked Adams and his team for their efforts to make the learners’ lives better.
“I’d like to thank the Nomads for this. It’s been worthwhile to develop the therapy rooms that we’ve been looking forward to developing for many years.
“For us, it’s a huge step towards helping the special needs children we have here for therapy. It’s worth every penny,” he said. Treacher also thanked Lisa Ellis from Inclusive Solutions for their assistance with the designing of the rooms.
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