GAUTENG SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUNDING STRENGTHENS CHILD PROTECTION SERVICES IN VANDERBIJLPARK

By Madali Chibambu

• The Gauteng Department of Social Development has renewed funding to Child Welfare Vanderbijlpark for the 2026/27 financial year, sustaining vital child protection services in the Sedibeng region.
• The organisation delivers a comprehensive range of statutory and preventative programmes—from foster care and trauma support to food relief and community outreach.
• Rising operational costs and growing social challenges continue to place financial pressure on non-profit organisations despite government support.

In Vanderbijlpark, a small team of social workers and volunteers has spent decades standing between vulnerable children and harm. Their work, often unseen, always urgent—continues today because of renewed funding from the Gauteng Department of Social Development

Child Welfare Vanderbijlpark is one of several non-profit organisations across the province that will receive financial support during the 2026/27 financial year. For the Sedibeng community it serves, that funding translates into child protection services, family support programmes, and relief for households caught in the grip of poverty.

Manager of Child Welfare Vanderbijlpark, Magda De Man, said the organisation remains focused on its core mandate of child protection and delivering professional social welfare services to all children and families, regardless of race, creed or gender.

“As a child protection organisation, we focus on safeguarding vulnerable children, keeping them safe, giving them second chances and supporting poverty relief initiatives. Our work is aimed at developing self-reliance and empowering people to help themselves,” said De Man.

She added that the organisation continues to strive towards sustaining and expanding services to meet the growing needs of the Vanderbijlpark community.
De Man highlighted that despite the support received, many non-profit organisations continue to face financial pressures due to rising operational costs and increasing social challenges affecting communities.

Child Welfare Vanderbijlpark provides a wide range of statutory and preventative services, including interventions in cases involving abuse, neglect and abandonment of children, foster care supervision and screening, family reunification services, trauma debriefing, and family preservation programmes addressing challenges such as substance abuse, parenting difficulties and behavioural issues affecting children.

The organisation also facilitates parenting programmes, foster parent training, co-parenting classes and support groups for foster children. In addressing poverty and food insecurity, the organisation operates a soup kitchen five days a week and distributes food parcels to vulnerable families.

Additional programmes include child protection awareness campaigns, teenage pregnancy prevention initiatives, holiday programmes for foster children, fundraising projects, community outreach activities and educational awareness programmes through local media platforms and student partnerships.

Looking ahead, the organisation believes its role within the social service sector will become even more critical as communities continue to face social and economic hardships.

“We are not merely a centre, but a child protection organisation rendering critical statutory and preventative services to vulnerable children, families and communities. The demand for these services continues to grow, and we remain committed to serving those in need,” De Man concluded.

The Gauteng Department of Social Development continues to work closely with funded Non-Profit Organisations to ensure that essential social services reach the most vulnerable residents across the province, particularly children, families, older persons and persons with disabilities to name a few.

For the children of Vanderbijlpark, that partnership is more than policy. It is a lifeline.