PROJECT 

THE NIGHTINGALE CHILDREN’S VILLAGE

 

In 2011, we began a very ambitious project, which involved children in residential care in Barbados. We were aware that the family unit in Barbados was not as strong as it once was and that there were now several children who would spend their entire childhood in group homes without any visitation from family members. There were also dozens of children who may have been removed from their families for a variety of reasons including parental drug abuse, physical abuse, physical or mental disability or dysfunctional behaviour. The children were currently housed in a variety of locations across the island and were divided into age groups: birth to 4, 5 – 11 and 12 – 18.

 

We wanted to make a significant difference in their lives.

 

Our Vision was to create a Children’s Village where children in residential care would be raised in a caring and stable community.

 

We planned to achieve this by bringing all the babies and children under 11 years old together with all the special needs children to one location. By working closely with the Child Care Board and Minister, The Honourable Stephen Lashley, we had identified the Nightingale Village at Black Rock as the perfect location to realize our Vision.

 

The Nightingale Children’s Village is currently home to many children in the 5 – 11 yr. age group. The site is very large with 5 existing cottages, a large derelict house and several outbuildings with surrounding grounds. Of the five existing cottages, the Sandy Lane Charitable Trust re-built the Reception Centre to house an assessment centre for children entering the Care system. During 2010/11, the Barbados Children’s Trust re-built and furnished three more cottages costing a total of Bds$1.4 million. These cottages are now fully occupied.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In September 2011, we began construction of a ‘state of the art’ Special Care Home to be known as the “Violet Gittens Centre” in the Village. This home has now been completed. It will accommodate the special needs children from Haynesville. Haynesville is an old facility that cannot even begin to provide the facilities and level of care needed by children who suffer with cerebral palsy, spina bifida, severe autism and many other brain and birth defects.

 

This purpose built centre will achieve several objectives:-

 

• The home has been purpose built. This enables us to ensure that each individual child’s needs can be specifically met whether it is a special bed, pressure mattress, hoist, specific therapy equipment etc.

 

• The Home has 26 beds, which is larger than the current facility thus enabling more children to be moved from unsuitable conditions around the island.

 

• The staff has been trained to use much more sophisticated equipment, which in turn will enable them to improve the quality of life for these special children.

 

This project has cost us over Bds$2.3 million to build and a further Bds$1 million to equip. We realise that this was a huge undertaking but thanks to the generosity and support of our many friends on the island, we have made a dream come true.

 

The Violet Gittens Centre was officially opened by The Honorable Prime Minister Freundel Jerome Stuart QC M.P. on 12th January 2013.

 

The smile on a child’s face is worth so much to us – who knows how many more children we will find that need our help.