SOUTHERN CAPE NEWS - Child Welfare branches in the Southern Cape can look forward to providing services of a high level again.
Georeen Van Rensburg, provincial manager of Child Welfare Western Cape, said, "As from Saturday 1 July the Child Welfare Western Cape Board has taken back control of the province's finances and will be dealing directly with the Department of Social Development (DSD). The Western Cape, however, still remains affiliated to Child Welfare South Africa (CWSA)."
Many branches have been struggling since October last year due to CWSA's financial problems at national level, which sprout from mismanagement, the improper use of funds received from DSD and infighting between the national board and management.
From October 2016, staff at the Western Cape regional office in Bellville were paid erratically and when they were paid, it was only a portion of their salaries. The area managers who service the smaller CWSA branches also received irregular salary payments.
Mercia Cole, CWSA Southern Cape area manager, who services the Southern Cape branches from Heidelberg in the east to Plettenberg Bay in the west, as well as the Little Karoo, said, "It has been a very taxing period for us as we never had money for petrol and, with telephone lines cut due to non-payment, area managers weren't able to conduct the obligatory supervisory branch inspections.
"The branches themselves weren't as badly affected as their DSD subsidies were paid directly into the local Child Welfare bank accounts."
Van Rensburg explained, "As from 1 July, Child Welfare Western Cape (CWWC) has been recognised by DSD as a separate entity and will be managed independently of the national board.
"CWWC will now be paid directly by DSD and will be administrated and managed from Bellville. I'm looking forward to the new dispensation and hope that the problems of the past are now behind us."
Being run independently, though affiliated to CWSA, George Child and Family Welfare (GCFW) was not affected by the mismanagement at CWSA.
GCFW is not subject to input by the area manager that applies to the smaller branches.
According to Cole, the Albertinia and Heidelberg branches which were under the direct control of CWSA, are now again autonomous organisations which will be operating under the management of the provincial board.
"There is a vast improvement in positivity of the local Child Welfare branches as the news of the new arrangement starts filtering through," said Cole.
ARTICLE: MYRON RABINOWITZ, GEORGE HERALD JOURNALIST
(Myron Rabinowitz is a long-standing member of the Board of George Child and Family Welfare - Editor)
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