Early Intervention

Services offered to at-risk children aged 0-4 to give the best possible start in life…

Early intervention plays a vital role in promoting long-term motor, cognitive and communication outcomes for children with disabilities.  Holistic therapy for young children also results in the prevention of secondary impairments, promotes academic outcomes and gives parents important coping strategies improving their mental health.  

We see any child referred to us between the ages of 0-4 showing signs of significant and/or concerning delays in their cognitive, physical and social communication skills. These children may not have a confirmed diagnosis but we provide advocacy and support for the parents, out-patient therapy services and make referrals into the health care system to ensure that these children have the best possible start in life.

Early Child Development (E.C.D.) Classroom

The aim of this new preschool project is to integrate children with disabilities from this special care programme into mainstream as they get older…

This classroom was opened in 2022 and aims to provide young children with disabilities the opportunity to learn in a supportive environment with personalised goals and therapy to promote their growth and development. Our ECD children follow an adapted learning curriculum in partnership with Afrika Tikkun Bambanani.

We plan to expand this programme to include up to 30 children in 2024 with our ultimate goal being to establish an inclusive preschool setting where children with disabilities can learn and play alongside typically developing children. Inclusion, diversity and equity at an early age fosters an inclusive society where children with disabilities are respected, valued and integrated into the community.

Hearing Impairment Programme (H.I.P.)

The goal of this programme is to provide prevention, identification, testing and treatment of all Deaf/hearing impaired children and young adults in the Bitou area, ensuring best practice and inclusion for all within their families, communities and mainstream local schools.

Our Hearing Impairment Project began in January 2022 as an inspired response to the hearing needs of our community.  We noticed an increase in referrals of younger children with suspected hearing loss or delayed language development but with no confirmed diagnosis.  We found children with profound hearing loss in mainstream schools that had never been identified due to the backlog of hearing testing within the healthcare system.  The goal of H.I.P. is to provide prevention, identification, testing and treatment of all children and young adults in our community, ensuring best practice and inclusion within their families, community and mainstream schools.

Historically, Deaf children went away to special schools far away from their homes.  It has always been of particular concern to us that children who come back from these schools having learnt to sign find it incredibly challenging and sometimes impossible to communicate with their families or integrated into their local communities.  To inspire inclusion, we need to integrate these children into local schools and teach families and communities to communicate in sign.

This programme is very close to our hearts.  The Sabrina Love Foundation is leading the field in the inclusion of Deaf children in mainstream education.  We have our own hearing screening equipment and a Consultant Speech and Language Therapist and Audiologist who fits hearing aids and is fluent in South African Sign Language.  We have employed 2 Deaf Learner Facilitators who work with our Deaf children and teach SASL to teachers, families and the Sabrina Love Team.  We launched our ‘Time to Sign’ social media campaign which has been so successful, drawn many followers and eagerness from the community to learn to sign. 

We have partnered with a local school whose Principle and Teachers are onboard with the inclusion of our Deaf Foundation phase children.  We have 2 boys in Grade 1 with Charmilyn, our Deaf Learner Facilitator and a new Deaf Grade R learner enrolled for 2024.  These boys have a wonderful teacher who has embraced teaching them and learning South African Sign Language.  We support this school with learner facilitation, workshops, school visits and guidance to ensure the success of this inclusion project. 

Read more about Waden and Elri’s Journey | WATCH: Time to Sign

Parent Empowerment and Advancement

This programme aims to address challenges that parents and families face when raising a child with disabilities.

We perform yearly needs surveys to ascertain individual support needs and  home visits to high-risk families with immediate crises and social support needs.  Ensuring that parents are aware of their rights and the grant application process, and raising awareness within the community to reduce stigma are also integral to this programme.  

Our Community Development Manager works closely with parents in the community, running small intimate peer support groups where carers can share their experiences, help each other to find workable solutions and identify resources within their communities to assist them in their journey.  Larger parent support groups offer parents and opportunity to come together to talk about th

Staff Wellness Programme

Caring for children with disabilities can be a rewarding experience, but it is also physically and emotionally demanding.  Our staff team are the backbone to everything we do at Sabrina Love and this initiative focuses on the well-being and health of all our employees.

Technology for Inclusion

Technology plays a significant role in supporting inclusive education by providing tools and resources that cater to diverse learning needs.

We partner with Inclusive Solutions to provide needed laptops, printers, software and other specialised devices to allow access to learning material and an adapted way for our kids to produce their school work.  We receive no funding from government and all these essential devices are Sabrina Love funded.

Inclusive Education and the Kwano Pilot Project

This programme aims to ensure that all children with mild/moderate disabilities in the Bitou area are able to access inclusive education in a local school.

This includes the individualised technology, facilitator support and therapeutic interventions they may need to access the curriculum, overcome physical barriers, engage in all areas of school life, build social relationships and learn to their optimal potential.

Sabrina Love aims to keep children with their families and in their communities rather than being sent away to learn. We have no special school in our area so we took action to implement the Government White Paper 2001 (Building an inclusive education and training system) ourselves. Our model of Inclusive Education has been 8 years in it’s development. We have 26 disabled learners in 7 mainstream schools and creches with whom we partner. We train Learner Facilitators, provide essential technology, support the school teachers and provide additional therapy support to ensure these kids are able to learn amongst their peers.

Our Kwano Pilot Project runs at Kwanokuthula Primary School under the amazing leadership of a Principle, Mr Faleni, who has a heart for disability inclusion in his school.

‘…learning disabilities arise from the education system rather than the learner’ – White Paper 6 – 2001

Learner Facilitator Training

The Sabrina Love Foundation has trained and employed 18 Learner Facilitators who attend school with our disabled learners.

In the 8 years the Sabrina Love Foundation has been collaborating and supporting schools towards inclusion of children with disabilities, it is evident that teachers are overwhelmed with admin, the diversity of learners in their classes and high class numbers.  The idea of a child with disabilities being included is daunting and the result is reluctance, apprehension and a fearful attitude. 

The role of the Learner Facilitator is to support and assist the learner to reaching their full academic potential and functional independence.  They work alongside the teacher to ensure that learning material is adapted and accessible for our children who have a variety of different learning needs.

We partner with 7 local mainstream primary schools and creches. These partnerships with our ‘Inclusion Ambassador schools, has been a process of negotiation, advocacy, building trusting relationships of support and the provision of essential technology resources. Without the provision of Learner Facilitators, we would never have been able to convince schools to take our children, the disabled children would not have been able to access learning in the manner in which they have and the schools, teachers, peers and parents would not have had the invaluable experience of diversity within their schools.

Nowhere in the White Paper 6 strategic plan for implementation is the term facilitator referred to although they are an important part of the inclusive landscape in counties where inclusion is working effectively.   The Sabrina Love Foundation team has taken action on the White Paper and implemented Inclusive Education in the only way possible considering the current educational landscape – through the training and placement of these dedicated Learner Facilitators with our disabled children in classrooms.

We are in the process of formalising our Learner Facilitator Training Programme in Collaboration with UNISA.