Registered non-profit organisations have until 5 April 2019 to submit applications for the City’s Winter Readiness Programme.
The programme, which runs from May to September annually, sees the City supporting organisations that provide shelter for street people by supplementing their available resources to enable more indigent people to benefit from their services.
The City has set aside R700 000 for this purpose this year.
Organisations which are able to provide temporary mattress space during the winter period and who meet the stipulated criteria, will receive food parcels, toiletries, mattresses and bedding as well as Expanded Public Works Programme workers to assist with cooking and cleaning.
‘Shelters do feel the pinch in winter when more street people seek respite from the elements. So this programme is designed to build capacity and to create the extra space and resources needed.
‘I encourage organisations who want to apply to make sure that they meet all of the criteria and have all the relevant documentation to ensure that their application is successful,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Community Services and Health, Councillor Zahid Badroodien.
Plans are also in place to get the City’s Safe Space through its first winter. The City’s Social Development and Early Childhood Development Department has ordered extra blankets and waterproof sleeping bags and has requested the cleaning of culverts along the Culemborg Bridge to minimise leaks. Increased waterproofing of the fence will also be done.
It is also hoped to finalise the installation of a geyser for hot showers, although this is dependent on procurement processes.
‘The City’s Safe Space is not a shelter in the traditional sense, but rather a transitional overnight facility that provides an alternative to sleeping on the streets. We have had numerous successes since the facility opened its gates and we hope to build on this solid foundation that has been laid. The first full winter is going to be new territory for us but we are committed to working closely with our clients and partners to ensure their well-being over the colder months,’ said Councillor Badroodien.
In its first nine months of operation, the Safe Space has hosted 450 clients. Currently, there are 211 clients on site. Of the clients who have used the space:
48 are working part-time
seven are working full-time
12 have been relocated to their areas of origin outside of Cape Town
18 have been reunified with their families
nine have been placed in care facilities/shelters
72 have attended developmental programmes
The Sea Point, Fresnaye and Bantry Bay Ratepayers Association is assisting with securing identity documents for clients who need them; 200 funeral policies have been donated to the Safe Space clients and 27 non-governmental organisations are assisting with developmental opportunities, pop-up kitchens and donations.
City-wide, the Street People Programme facilitated assistance to 1 796 individuals between July and December 2018 and attended to just more than 5 000 complaints.
In addition, the programme is also facilitating 600 work opportunities for street people through the Expanded Public Works Programme until the end of June 2019.
Source: City Of Cape Town