SARDS is a child-focused development Facilitating Agency.  Mainstreaming of children concerns in all its sectoral interventions is a conscious exercise, SARDS takes it up in its strategy-building.  Child Resource Centers (CRCs) and Child led organizations at various levels through which SARDS operates.

Child enrollment and retention, School and Hostel environment improvement and safety, Quality education where there is no corporal punishment but replaces with child-friendly environment which promotes joyful learning, community vigilance mechanism to curb child labor, child-trafficking, child-marriages, Child abuse and other anti-social assaults on children and mainstreaming the Child friendly Accountable Mechanisms in the decision making systems at family, community and  local Governance  are  some of the main working experiences of SARDS all these years.

SARDS seeks to ensure children and youngsters acquire integrated value centered, rights-based, skill-oriented career education to compete with the contemporary job-market in order to help them realize their full potential and contribute to the overall development of the society. SARDS approach to education is simply CLASS which means Career-Led Advanced Support Schooling (CLASS).  The intended piece of work which is spelt in the above overall goal is expected to be realized in the bifurcation of two subsequent sub-goals.

 

Promotion of SAFE Schools:

SAFE (Self Assertive and Friendly Education) School concept for all children in the age group of 6-14 (Primary and Secondary schools) in             SARDS focused communities. Precisely, the SAFE SCHOOL aims to promote career-oriented education for the childrenof SARDS communities and improved safe school environment for an assured protection of child rightsin its operational districts.

The concept focuses, first, to ensure the child’s school environment is safe by all means; secondly, it fosters and adds career touch to the present education pattern.  Multiple efforts will be initiated to safeguard and promote the school environment to a level of `Self Assertive and Friendly Education’ (SAFE).  Some of the key anticipated results are – the children, parents, teachers, community leaders and education department representatives together will involve in drafting indicators for Safe School; school safety nets will be institutionalized and kept in practice; school health, water and sanitation measures will be improved; Creative Art Schooling will take place with the promotion of several employment-oriented soft skills, arts and crafts; leadership qualities and capacities will be acquired.

Here the child is provided regular education in a safety school premises while the education is flavored with the career-oriented directions right from the young age. Therefore, SAFE School ensures every child a benefactor of education coupled with career options. The Safe School concept has been designed to improve both primary and secondary schools and hostels in SARDS serviced areas.

We are now implementing the SAFE school concept in 200 institutions related to children such as pre-schools, schools, social welfare hostels, Residential schools, Ashram schools, Gurukulams, KGBVs etc; in 12 Mandals of Markapuram Division of Prakasam District and providing technical support to other NGOs in the State of Andhra Pradesh under Balahitha Project with the Partnership of Christian child fund Canada and Andhra Pradesh state commission for Protection of Child Rights, Go AP.

 

Introduction of JOB Schools for youngsters:

JOB (Job Oriented Business)School concept for all the youngsters in the age group of 15-18+ from all SARDS focused Communities. Again briefly, the JOB School aims to promote job oriented skills vis-à-vis placements for the youngsters in SARDS focused communities.  It works on the principle of `placements-oriented skills and skill-oriented placements’.

The Job School concept has been designed such a way that it trains and instils career-oriented job preparations to all the youngsters and ensures every youngster engaged in either with an employer or with private enterprise development programmes in order to make them potential entrepreneurs by providing Career counselling and Guidance, vocational/skill development trainings, job preparation services, facilitating placements and follow up in etc;

We have organised a number of career guidance, counselling, soft skills and vocational skills enhancement, facilitating services and follow up in 100 villages in Prakasam district, with the partnership of Plan international, save the children, TDH, SSA etc

 

Stakeholders engagement in Children & Education

SARDS has Adopted and promoted Child friendly Accountability Mechanism (CFAM) which is defined as a series of strategic efforts to ensure that the voices of children are meaningfully taken into account[1]in reducing vulnerabilities and incidences of child marriages, child labor, child abuse, child exploitation, child discrimination etc.Child-friendly accountability provides required information to children in an age & gender appropriate form & method that is accessible and intelligible am to them, and thus, provides a vehicle (Child led organizations) through which they may participate in a meaningful way in decision making process at family, community and local governance level.

Child-friendly accountability ultimately aims to improve the child protection system at family, educational institutions, community levels. Our initiative will build children’s and youths’ knowledge, help them identify protection gaps and carry out direct action or advocacy with their communities to address gaps.

Predominantly, the advocacy issues related to children are of two kinds.  One, is general level advocacy and two, specific issue-based advocacy.  General level advocacy focuses on Policy related issues. And the issue-focused-advocacy involves in the immediate felt-needs of the children such as Child labor, disabled children, children who are in migration, Child marriages, Lack of School Teachers, Lack of School/Hostel Infrastructure and physical environment.

Some of the campaigns launched are Signature Campaign, Post card campaign, Child Rights Week Celebration, special drives on school enrollment and retention, Birth registration, submission of memorandums to elected representatives and officials, The Child Led Advocacy Platform (CLAP) also extends its involvement in various forums and networks such as CACL, CACT, AP-CRAF, NATSAP, AP Child Rights Forum and AP Alliance for Child Rights.

SARDS has implemented a number of interventions relating to children and education for 100% school enrollment and retention, education support for the children of vulnerablefamilies, conducting school children competitions, Psyco-social care, construction of child resource centers, Child creative center, additional class rooms, New school buildings, aids and appliances for the physically challenged children, Integrated education for visually and intellectually impaired children, mainstreaming the children infected and affected by HIV/AIDs and child Labour into formal education institutional  and welfare hostels. Transit center for the children rescued from Trafficking for labour and sexual exploitation,  Running Residential Training Centers for Children of Sex workers and other vulnerable children, seasonal hostels for children of Migrant parents, Child rights advocacy initiatives,  Convergence forums,  promotion of children associations and networks, Child reporters and child run newsletter (Sneha Bala), Establishment of a Mutual Aided Cooperative society (AASARA) for extending financial services for the families at risk of child labour, child trafficking , child Marriages, child migration and Disasters  with the partnership of  Christian Child Fund Canada, CFLI, Plan international, Save the children fund, SLF, German Agro Action, CARE India,  UNICEF/, Mahitha, M.V. Foundation, HIV Alliance,  CBM, Mobility India, SLF, MIBLOW, CRY, Group development (GD),  Govt of A.P etc.; in the operational area of SARDS.