Tel. +44 (0)1273 600030 (UK)
This surfing project is located on the stunning white sandy beaches of Muizenburg, near Cape Town. It is a well-established, locally-run project, with a great reputation amongst the community. Volunteers play an essential role in keeping the scheme running - you can never have too many pairs of eyes or hands when you’re looking after a bunch of excited children on the beach and in the sea!
So, how does this project make a difference?
You’ll be helping to provide a temporary respite for children from disadvantaged backgrounds, getting them off the streets and away from negative influences; giving them the chance to enjoy something that most of us took for granted growing up – having fun and just enjoying being children. You’ll be motivating the children to attend and do well in school - the chance to join the programme is provided as a reward for the children if they excel in school. You may be on dinner duties! The project also provides a food support scheme whereby every child who attends a surf lesson gets a hearty home-cooked meal. You’ll be educating the children in a fun way on the importance of healthy eating and fitness, helping South Africa's next generation to be as fit and active as possible!
We believe that travel should have a lasting positive impact that helps to change lives for the better. Our ethos is that under the right guidance from our local partners you can help to bring about positive change. It is a simple fact that most the countries we visit do not have adequate resources to financially support or staff up new initiatives and that’s where you can make a significant difference – in lending your time, energy and enthusiasm to ensure that the projects have a constant flow of volunteers ready to get stuck in and eager to help them achieve their goals.
Through our programme of supported volunteering we assist volunteers to participate on existing projects, which have often approached us for support. These projects existed before our partnership and would continue without, albeit a little slower in achieving their goals. We believe it is vitally important to support worthwhile projects in a sustainable way that doesn’t have a destabilising effect on their development and the wider community.
People who travel on our trips return home with a much deeper understanding of the country visited than a typical tourist would ever gain. Prior to departure all our volunteers receive information containing guidance on how to travel and experience a culture responsibly and, where volunteers will be working with children, we insist upon a criminal records check even if it is not required by the country they are volunteering in. On arrival in the destination country all our volunteers receive a welcome briefing and our local coordinators are on hand to give any additional guidance and advice during their stay.
Wherever and whenever possible, all the staff and leaders are sourced locally providing a great insight into the way of life; we use family home-stays or locally-run accommodation and we encourage use of local markets and public transport to help ensure as much money as possible goes into the local economy.
We invite every traveller who books a holiday via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the holidays they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same holiday can have different views!
