NAME
Cradle to Classroom
PARTNER
Credit Suisse, Yin Shin Leung Charitable Foundation
NEW URBAN VERSIONS
Lifestyle Urban, Purpose Capital
DATE
2017 - present
TYPE
Early Childhood Intervention Programme
Holistic family wellness for Sham Shui Po families
OVERVIEW
1 in 5 children live in poverty in Hong Kong. In Sham Shui Po, SVhk’s experience working with underprivileged families showed that many children growing up in subdivided units, socially isolated, were more likely to face learning difficulties without adequate access to family support and early diagnosis / treatment for special education needs.
Cradle to Classroom (C2C), is set up as a pilot project with the aim to develop a holistic intervention for families with young children. As at 2020, C2C actively services over 300 families in Sham Shui across income profiles, creating a platform-in-common to promote family wellness and empowerment.
SVHK’s ROLE
SVhk operates the Cradle to Classroom programme since its inception, working closely with local partners to innovate new community models to support the evolving needs of Sham Shui Po families.
HIGHLIGHTS / PARTNERSHIPS
Innovating a Clubhouse community for mutual support
Launched in 2017, the Cradle to Classroom Clubhouse was initially modelled as a place for parents of low-income families in Sham Shui Po to bring their children to play and relax, opening three mornings every week for members to drop in and enjoy curated activities during the opening hours. The model slowly evolved into a staple within the community, a growing physical and digital network that facilitates mutual support through partnership with HKSKH Lady Maclehose Centre Timebank initiative and WhatsApp Groups.
Aggregating cross-platform exposures and opportunities
The expanding network of over 30 partners, from NGOs providing service opportunities to corporates providing business opportunities, allowed Cradle to Classroom to fill a gap for parents and children in Sham Shui Po who requires further support that may not be provided by any single provider in the neighbourhood. This includes collaboration with professional social workers and therapists to provide early detection and timely intervention for young children showing special education needs symptoms and parents showing alarming stress and anxiety levels.
IMPACT
“I am really grateful to be chosen as one of the intensive care families. Under your care and guidance, my children have learned and grown a lot. They love and are eager to go to C2C. Whenever I said “let’s go to C2C”, they would be so happy and went to change clothes immediately. I believe that it is because they can also feel the sincerity from all of the staff at C2C.
– Yan, parent member, children aged 3& 4.5
“I used to bring my daughter to park early in the morning every day as we had no room to play in our cubicle. The clubhouse offered a far safer and more educational environment for my girl, and I could finally sit down and relax a bit.”
– Ching, parent member, child aged 2
