The safety and reliability of a transport service to a Pinetown-based school dedicated to providing specialised education for children with cerebral palsy, autism, and learning disabilities has been assured following the donation of a brand new R1 072 000 bus.
The Browns’ School, established in 1964, currently serves some 340 special needs children, ranging in age from three to 18 years, and is dedicated to providing every child with a safe learning environment.
The South African Muslim Charitable Trust (SAMCT) recently donated the new bus, replacing the oldest one in the school’s fleet. This ensures the continuity of safe, quality transport for learners and prevents excessive maintenance costs.
SAMCT representative, Mr Gaff Osman, said of the bus donation: “It is imperative that the school has in place a safe, reliable, and cost-effective transport fleet. The bus replacement need was most pressing and is the first of many requiring replacement during the coming several years.”
“Most of the parents of children attending The Browns’ School either both work or do not have transport. Without the school’s fleet of especially modified buses, some 149 children simply would not be able to attend school. Enabling their attendance is, therefore, a critical school service and has proved crucial, given that children attend the school from across the Greater Durban Area, with more than 79% coming from disadvantaged backgrounds. The fleet traverses nine different routes daily, inclusive of central Durban, Amanzimtoti, Durban North, and Hillcrest.”
The Browns’ School offers a barrier-free learning environment, with a flexible curriculum offering appropriate quality education, thus ensuring access to learners who require levels of support not offered in mainstream schools. Each child’s experience of disability is unique and each faces a different set of challenges, some with learning disabilities and others who are on the autistic spectrum or have cerebral palsy. They all receive customised care and specialised education to help them succeed.
Mr Osman added: “Learning of the need to maintain transport continuity for the benefit of its special needs learners from across the Durban area, the SAMCT was quick to heed The Browns’ School’s plea for assistance. Funded by a Government subsidy, fundraising efforts and school fees, the school simply lacked the financial muscle to meet the capital expenditure outlay required to finance a new vehicle.”
The SAMCT was created in 2008, the result of a partnership between Old Mutual Unit Trusts and Al Baraka Bank, for the creation, marketing and distribution of a suite of Shariah Funds. The organisation provides funding, services and other resources to improve the lives of the vulnerable, deprived and disadvantaged. It has successfully delivered sizeable assistance solutions throughout
South Africa – irrespective of race or religion – and continues to work to support needy organisations in the fields of healthcare, social development, poverty alleviation and education.
The Browns’ School is unique and children are either referred by other schools or by independent medical professionals. It caters for children who have special educational needs and who can benefit from the programmes the school offers. Some 20% of its children receive a full or partial remission on their school fees, but The Browns’ School never turns anyone away who can’t pay. Learners not only receive specialised education tailored to their individual needs and abilities, they also receive various specific support, inclusive of physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, remedial and psychological evaluation and assistance. The school offers children with special needs the chance to harness their strengths and facilitates their development to their maximum potential.
Mr Osman said: “In spite of its many challenges, The Browns’ School continues to offer an excellent standard of specialised education and the SAMCT is proud to have partnered with the school to ensure an uninterrupted logistics system for the benefit of the special needs learners it serves.”
Ends
For more information about the SAMCT or it’s The Browns’ School bus donation, please contact:
Rasheeda Motala
Social Responsibility Officer
Tel: 084 506 2280
Email: samct@samct.co.za
www.samct.co.za