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Description
Worldwide Orphans Bulgaria (WWO-Bulgaria) works to support vulnerable groups of children and their families through programmes relying on play in special Early Childhood Learning Spaces (ECLS), which it has developed in partnership with 12 NGOs in the country. The COVID-19 crisis and its aftermath posed challenges before the organizations at local level. The challenges have to do with the need to develop activities ensuring the safety and well-being of vulnerable families with young children as well as the change in the organization and content of our programmes and practices. It is necessary to regain the trust of families and communities and help them acquire skills to organize themselves in order to ensure the health and well-being of their children. The project aims at raising the capacity of the organizations - members of WWO to develop their Early Childhood Learning Spaces for families and children from vulnerable communities against the backdrop of dealing with the aftermath of COVID-19. The achieved goal will ensure that the Early Childhood Learning practices are safely resumed with active involvement of the families and communities which might yield them sustainability. The project outcomes will be achieved by developing approaches and procedures used by organizations to work with the families; creating a programme for development of the parents’ social skills, training the trainers from 13 NGOs, piloting the programme for development of parents’ social skills in 5 vulnerable communities, monitoring and evaluation of the Learning Spaces in the situation of COVID-19 crisis.
Summary of project results
The project aimed to upgrade the capacity of NGOs, members of the early childhood partnership network of the Element of Play® learning spaces, to restart and implement their practices in post pandemic situation in safe conditions for children, their families and professionals. Some of the project activities related to training and consultations for 13 NGOs for development and improvement of organizational policies and working procedures in post pandemic working environment. Through specially designed Program for Parental Skills Development, training for trainers and piloting of the program, the project provides additional resources for specialists to work with vulnerable groups. In order to ensure the sustainability of the local learning practices for children and parents, the project included stakeholders’ evaluation and monitoring in 5 locations in the country.
As a result of the project implementation 13 NGOs were supported to develop and put into the practice policies and working procedures in post pandemic situation. Acquired knowledge, skills and developed procedures has not only direct implication on the learning spaces, but benefit to the improvement of organizational capacity of the NGO which were part of the project.
The evaluation and monitoring workshops with the participation of 48 stakeholder representatives in 5 locations provided an opportunity to involve local communities in the development of the Element of Play® learning spaces and programs for children and parents. The project’s outcome - Program for Parental Skills Development - with its long-term nature guarantee sustainability of the project activities and practices in support of families with young children.
The project strengthened the development of the network as a learning and supportive professional community in which practices are exchanged, knowledge is upgraded and common standards are shared, which is crucial for the future work in support of vulnerable families with young children.
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