Abraham Kriel is thrilled to announce that several of our house-parents have received their Level 4 SETA qualification in Child and Youth Care. This achievement marks a significant enhancement of their knowledge in caring for our precious children.

Alda Ellis, who has been with Abraham Kriel for nine years, says the course gave her deeper insight into children’s psychological needs. “We learnt about the different trauma responses – fight, flight, fawn or freeze – and about identifying triggers in children,” she explains. “It’s given me insight into what is happening behind outward behaviours.”

For Margaret Lebese, who has been with Abraham Kriel for seven years, taking the course was a natural extension of her vision as a child-care worker. “My vision is helping the child to know themselves, to discover themselves, and to plan something beneficial for their lives. When they go out in the world, they should face it with an open mind, not feeling inadequate, but knowing that they are capable,” says Margaret. Both Alda and Margaret agree that their relationship with the children is central to their work and that, in Margaret’s words, “I take each and every child under my care as my own.”

Alda notes that, “It’s important to be emotionally available to the children and to build their trust. The children know they can come to me with their secrets, their problems and their worries. Of course, there is a difficult balance to strike, because sometimes children tell you things that need to be reported to a social worker. You never want the child to feel that you have betrayed their trust. So, it is a very delicate process of building that bond of trust with the child.”
Central to this process, Margaret adds, is understanding that “each child has his or her own unique mentality” and needs to be seen as an individual. Furthermore, Margaret explains, children need to experience love from care-workers to access love for themselves. “When you do well for them, they will want to do well for you. They will take you seriously and walk further with you.”

As Alda and Margaret continue guiding young people toward autonomy and trust, we thank them for their dedication. By pursuing further qualifications, they have exemplified our commitment to knowledge-based care which seeks to understand more deeply.