Senior Reporter
akash.samaroo@guardian.co.tt
Residents at the St Jude’s Home for Girls (St Jude’s) will soon be able to earn an income and be exposed to improved trauma interventions to prepare them for life after State care.
These are just some of the several new benefits the home’s management listed as they gave Guardian Media an exclusive first-hand look at their recently refurbished facility at what used to be the St Michael’s School for Boys, in Diego Martin.
Vacating their Belmont premises became a necessity when the dilapidated infrastructure could not attain the infrastructural requirements for licensure, which is a legal requirement for all homes come July 1.
Speaking at the Diego Martin compound even as items were being unpacked, manager Deoraj Sookdeo explained the possibilities the much bigger facility brings with it.
“In terms of the programmes for the young ladies, we have more accessibility to facilities in terms of we have an industrial baking shop, we have more space for schooling, so we can do more subjects than we did before. We are going to have heavy emphasis on sports as here we have a savannah, a basketball court and a netball court on the compound.”
Sookdeo showed Guardian Media an empty cafeteria, which means that the girls will now be able to sit together and share a meal, whereas in the past they ate separately in their rooms.
The added space in the front is also furnished with stone benches and lush fruit trees, which the manager said will be excellent areas for family members to spend time with residents during visits.
Sookdeo motioned to the grassy area and said a change from the cramped Belmont facility would do wonders for the children’s mindset.
“Any client in an enclosed area feels intimidated, they need to feel a level of comfort, not confined or that they are in a jail-like system. Here you have the opportunity to make the space as homely as possible.”
But a bigger space means the need for more supervision and security and Sookdeo confirmed that soon they will be seeking additional staff.
He also mentioned that a decision is yet to be made on whether Children in Need of Supervision (CHINS) will be separated from the rest of the resident population.
CHINS are there by court order and according to staff at St Jude’s who spoke to Guardian Media in the past, they tend to show violent tendencies which care givers are not trained to deal with.
“There are some things that are going to be done differently but there are some things that are going to be the same. For example, the interventions are for all clients on the compound, but for the CHINS clients, a heavy emphasis will be placed on trauma and family life.”
Sookdeo said the Board of Directors is also looking at establishing a trauma centre on the compound. Something the Belmont location could not accommodate due to space limitations.
“Most of our clients come in traumatised, we are trying to make this space appealing for the client and to be able to better treat with them. We would have wanted to have it before, but we always had to be shuffling for space in Belmont,” he said.
Sookdeo boasted that the facility will also give St Jude’s the ability to better prepare residents for transitioning out of state care upon reaching the age of 18.
He said, “One of the things we are discussing with the board is that we can do weekend shops where the girls can sell bread, cake and pastries. We want to develop a beauty salon where, on weekends, the community can come in and the girls can earn a little income. We want to go into agriculture where we can even bottle our own seasoning. We have that ability now.”
St Jude’s has under two weeks to become fully licenced. The Children’s Community Residences, Foster Care and Nurseries Act, No. 65 of 2000 (the Act) mandates that from July 1 all unlicenced facilities will be shutdown.
Sookdeo said the only thing outstanding for licensure is a “fire certificate” which he expects to be sorted out shortly. In fact, during Guardian Media’s visit, the news team was told that personnel from the Fire Service were on their way for an inspection.
Speaking in Malabar at a People’s National Movement meeting on June 1, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley declared that the Government allocated almost $20 million to refurbish the facility for the 65 girls who are expected to call it home come July 1.
Guardian Media was told by Sookdeo that a breakdown of $20 million will be provided once all repairs are completed.
But for now, Sookdeo said the move is still being treated as a “temporary” measure.
