Hluhluwe crèche fights for grant
Four crèches that received money appear to have been previous recipients of the grant.
ISIBANISEZWE Crèche on Nibela Reserve near Hluhluwe provides vital services to poor and needy children, but is forced to operate on privately donated funds as the Department of Social Development (DSD) failed to honour its approved grant for the facility.
Those involved with the crèche celebrated the opening of its new premises in 2013, which meant children attending the Isibanisezwe Crèche could have their own facilities instead of sharing with Nqutshini Primary School.
Funding and donations from Standard Bank furnished the crèche and paid for all running costs for the 2013 academic year.
During this time Yvonne Slabbert, who joined Isibanisezwe’s management team in 2012, applied to the Makhasa DSD office for an Early Childhood Development (ECD) grant.
Business plans and all required documentation were submitted in January last year but Slabbert heard nothing from the department.
Eight months later, after hundreds of telephone calls to track the application, Slabbert received confirmation of the grant’s approval.
Despite this, the money did not materialise and Slabbert was eventually informed the department’s budget had run out and she would have to re-submit the application the following year.
It has since come to light that, of the 25 crèches in the same area that applied for the ECD grant, only four received money while the others received approval but no money.
Furthermore, the four that received money appear to have been previous recipients of the grant. This calls into question the DSD’s willingness to sort through new applications, which is of major concern to Slabbert for both Isibanisezwe Crèche and the numerous others subject to the same treatment.
While the Makhasa DSD office reportedly fulfilled its part in Slabbert’s grant application, leaving the grant payment in the hands of a central DSD office, the officer who dealt with Slabbert’s application was unavailable for comment.
Slabbert will continue to fight for the ECD grant to which she believes Isibanisezwe Crèche is entitled, without which the crèche would be forced to close its doors. In the meantime, 35 crèches have formed a forum and are working together for a better system.
Fifty-seven children currently attend Isibanisezwe Crèche where they receive one meal every day and age-appropriate education to prepare them for Grade R at Nqutshini Primary School.
Isibanisezwe services a poor, HIV/Aids-ridden community whose children are raised by their grandparents.
