Onse Skool opened its doors in February 2014 and was the only Early Childhood Development Centre for children from the farmworker community in an area of 40 km2 for 10 years.
The four building blocks of this centre were Excellence, Collaboration, Joy and Integrity. All staff members were from the farming community and all of them received their ECD training while employed at the school; and became agents of change in the community.
We had the privilege to follow different guidelines from many gifted mentors in the Early Childhood Development world and eventually implemented the Kinderland programme, which led to excellent results and an especially strong foundation in language and mathematical development.
Community involvement was of utmost importance. The school was housed in a renovated cellar building, made available by Lammershoek Winery. Transport to and from the school was organised by landowners and parents from different farms. All parents paid a basic school fee, regularly attended parent meetings and participated in school activities. The local swimming club in Malmesbury offered swimming lessons and we had unforgettable trips to the local police station, chemist, library, museum, etc.
After COVID farmworkers have moved or have been moved to town steadily. The number of preschool children diminished up to a point where the official school had to be closed at the end of 2023. The last 20 children are currently in a day mother facility on the premises of the old school, where 4 educators (financially supported by mainly Lammershoek) still follow the Kinderland programme, each taking care of 5 children.
In 2025 the preschool “Onse Hoop” is due to open in a new RDP development in Malmesbury, in an area where the farmworkers have been moving to.
Our main focus is community development through education; therefore training and empowerment of facilitators, educators and adult collaborators are as important as the education of children.
There was a high rate of unemployment in the Paardeberg when we started operating there in 2008 and unemployment is currently even more of a challenge in the De Hoop area in Malmesbury where we are putting down roots.
The Trust endeavours to employ local people where possible and train them, rather than employing trained people from other communities. This often means that we have more educators or facilitators than is strictly necessary, in order to create training possibilities while maintaining a standard of excellence.
The development of more general skills is also addressed. Staff members are, for example, actively encouraged to obtain driver’s licences or basic computer knowledge; or participate in life skill training, such as leadership skills or conflict management. Cooking classes and knowledge regarding healthy eating patterns are examples of training subjects that can easily be passed on to community members and often lead to initiatives that encourage community cohesion and development.
This process is time-consuming and projects develop more slowly than they would have if they could have started with fully-trained staff from Day One. We need dedicated people who are committed to their specific community and who master the challenges that are part of developing leadership skills; and this is the only way in which we can work towards this goal
The school in De Hoop will have a specific community and library space for more focused activities and various get-togethers.
The Onse Hoop Crèche and Community Centre is in the process of being constructed in two phases in the De Hoop RDP housing development in Malmesbury. Phase 1 has been completed and inaugurated in May 2025, with 50 – 60 children. Phase 2 will be completed by the end of October 2025 so that a total of 120 preschool children can be accomodated.
400 RDP houses were assigned to their new owners in 2023 and a total of 5000 houses are in the process of being constructed. Most of the new owners were previously from farms or informal settlements.
Unemployment figures are high in the wider area (49% in the last census) and even higher in the De Hoop settlement. The average income per family is R2 500 per month, with most families being dependent on state subsidies. Criminality, connected to drug dealing, is a very tangible threat and many young people are drawn to this alternative possibility of income.
There are no community facilities in this new development yet. The nearest preschools in adjacent areas already have long waiting lists. There are quite a number of primary school children who do not attend school at all and are found on the streets during the day. Even when Onse Hoop becomes an active preschool, we will still only be addressing the tip of the iceberg.
The school is designed to accommodate at least 120 children from 12 months to 5 years of age. The plans include a multifunctional space (with direct access from the street) that can be used by the community as a social or church space; and for specific, organised community projects (library/reading classes /computer skills/ educational activities such as prenatal classes/ nutritional training/ etc.) as well.
We started to reach out to the community at the beginning of 2024 with various more informal projects, such as photo shoots of the new owners and their homes, Sunday afternoon prayer meetings and get-togethers. The community reciprocated quite spontaneously by suggesting informal fundraising projects to be able to donate a name board or maybe a jungle gym to the school once it is completed. These fundraisers have already opened the door to many more possibilities for nutritional projects in future, once the Onse Hoop School and Community Centre are completed.
