Counselling

Who are we?

The impact of violence, abuse and dysfunctional families on a diverse urban society like Hillbrow, can be very traumatic and leave lifelong scars of deeply-rooted emotional wounds in the heart of an individual and the community. We, as the Counselling, Care and Support Unit, and as part of the Outreach Foundation, contribute positively towards the prevention of violence and abuse through restoring the moral fibre of society by providing counselling, advocacy, capacity building, community-based research and the provision of a mental ‘safe space’.

Part of the Community Outreach initiative is Counselling, Care and Support interventions that are provided to the participants in our programmes and the community at large.

These initiatives include the following:

Case Management – Managing clients individual development plans (IDP);
Counselling – Providing regular debriefing sessions, group work therapy to victims of violence, abuse, trauma and bereavement;
Pre-rehab intervention – Family reunification, admission to drug treatment centres, and aftercare;
Community Awareness – Provide awareness campaigns on issues affecting the community; and
Migrant Support initiative – To specifically provide counselling to migrants at risk.

The process of care:

Step 1: Every client is individually assessed by a counsellor worker.

Step2: Intervention decided upon together by the client and counsellor (IDP).

Step3: Exit strategy of the client.

Step4: Follow up.

Counselling is provided in a safe space of care.

Counsellor’s code of conduct

Our counsellors work to a code of conduct, a practical tool and internal compass that guides all our volunteers, part-time and full-time employees. It is underpinned by an emphasis on our commitment to maintaining a high standard in our ethical and professional approach as counsellors; a high priority on confidentiality, protection of human rights; and offering a professional service to the community.

Read Our Story

Our Goals

We strive to:

Develop family reunification

Provide counselling and support in a safe environment

Undergo weekly street outreaches

Our Team:

Kefiloe Pitso

-Assessment Officer

Sizwe Bottoman

-Assistant Counsellor

Ethel Munyai

-Programme Manager

On Our Blog:

Thanks for the donation!

Outreach Foundation received bulk sanitary ware from Hillbrow SAPS. They donated the goods as they refer shelter and repatriation assistance cases to us.

GBV and empowerment workshops

Outreach Foundation facilitated gender-based violence and empowerment workshops. One workshop was with a group of men and the second, with mixed-gender. The workshops took place at the Johannesburg Housing Company.

Children are dying because they are migrants

COVID-19 has, unfortunately, shown us how many gaps there are in the Children’s Act of 2005, which is meant to provide all children in South Africa with basic rights.

As per the South African Constitution’s Bill of Rights, section 28, all children in South Africa are entitled to several rights such, as basic nutrition, shelter, basic health care services and social services, as well as to be protected from maltreatment, neglect, abuse or degradation to name a few.

According to Outreach Foundation’s programme manager for the counselling department, Ethel Munyai, this Act certainly does not cover migrant children.

“I am totally despondent as these rights are just on paper but not actioned. We work with migrants in South Africa and a case we recently came across involved four children who were malnourished due to their parents being unable to work and earn an income during the COVID-19 lockdown.

“I was pushed from pillar to post as no one wanted to help.

“I approached several agencies that deal with children’s welfare, and even they were not interested, which really surprised me.

“These four children are just a few of thousands who are battling to survive.

“I eventually found out that the children have to be moved into temporary safe care, which is court-sanctioned, before people will even think of stepping in and this is not a quick process.”

Munyai said that she eventually managed to find a hospital that agreed to assess the children’s health.

“One of the children was immediately admitted as her situation was so serious, and the other two children will receive out-patient care and were taken to a shelter. But for the one child, it was too late.

“My heart breaks for that child and his parents. I cannot believe that he had to die because he comes from a migrant family. He was born in South Africa, but they battled to get him registered.”

According to Munyai, the situation for migrants in South Africa is dire, especially during this time.

“COVID-19 has been bad for everyone in the country, but for migrants, it has other consequences such as being unable to sort their papers out. This makes it hard for them to access health care or employment.

“The consequences of not being able to sort their documentation out results in situations like this, where children are affected and are dying.

“All children, whether they are South African or not should be afforded the rights that are stated in the Act, but that’s not happening.

“They say you can judge a country by the way they treat their children. If that is the case, we are a sad, sad country. I wish for the day that all children in this country are treated equally and are given the opportunity to live a good and healthy life.”

The Outreach Foundation Counselling Centre has provided essential mental health services and support to migrants and South Africans in Johannesburg and Pretoria before and during the pandemic.

Thousands of children are dying because of red tape with regard to migrants — Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash