Sinovuyo Caring Families Project

The overall goal of the Sinovuyo Caring Families Program is to reduce the risk for child maltreatment in high-risk South African and Southern African families. In order to attain this goal, the following are specific objectives:

• "Increase parenting knowledge, skill, and sense of competence
• Improve positive parenting behaviour
• Improve parental supervision of children
• Decrease inconsistent and harsh discipline
• Improve caregiver mental health and social support"

In order to achieve these objectives, community care workers provide capacity building and play a supportive role for parents and caregivers. The programme consists of the following three components: 12-15 pschosocial support group sessions, and 2 individualised in-home visits by the care workers.

Each psychosocial support group session is approximately 2.5 to 3 hours long, and includes about 15 caregivers. The meetings focus on dealing with the caregivers’ own stresses, while also teaching skills to parent children in a nurturing manner. Each week, caregivers are given home practice activities designed to further their skills development, such as stress relief exercises and new parenting skills to try.

During the programme, the facilitators also visit the homes of the participants to reinforce the activities learned during group sessions. This is an opportunity for the facilitators to work one-on-one with caregivers and their children and provide additional support or counselling if necessary.

Towards the end of the programme, the participants are given the opportunity to organise their own celebration to culminate the learning process. This typically varies from picnics or braais (barbecues) to performances of traditional songs, dances, and games involving children; and includes group reflection to process the experience. .

As of April 2014 and following the initial pilot phase, the Sinovuyo programme is being tested by using a randomised controlled trial with 300 families. This is intended to provide a scientific evaluation for the effectiveness of the Sinovuyo programme in bringing about a reduction in abuse and harsh parenting, improvements in family relationships, and in caregiver levels of depression.

HIV/AIDS, Poverty, and Violence

According to Clowns Without Borders, "child abuse is a major problem in South Africa. Children who are affected by HIV/AIDS and poverty are especially at risk with rates from 40% to 60% amongst low-income children. Victims of abuse are more likely to drop out of school, engage in risky sexual behavior and criminal activity, and continue the cycle of abuse with their own children. Families with HIV-infected parents, foster parents, and/or parents who are victims of intimate partner violence are particularly high-risk groups for child abuse. For these parents and caregivers, the stresses of their health problems, of caring for multiple orphaned children and of their own childhood experiences can make parenting more difficult."