The catering project provides a professional catering service to on-site partners, communities, NGOs and the corporate sector who either hire our venues or require catering services at other venues within Cape Town. It also forms part of the skills development project by providing Chef Assistant and Canteen Assistant training to Centre clients.

Contact person: Shumeeze Johaardien (shumeeze@womenscentre.co.za); 021 633 5287

Job-Skills Training Project (economic empowerment programmes)

There is a direct link between domestic violence and poverty. Not only do unemployment and a lack of financial resources exacerbate the abuse, but they also severely limit the survivor’s choices about her and her children’s future. The Centre thus recognises that in order to effectively address domestic violence it needs to include job skills and training programmes with the counselling, legal assistance and other services its partners provide for its clients.

The majority of women who come to the Centre, either as residents or clients of the counseling services, are unemployed. Their immediate need to earn money has led to a number of successful initiatives which create income generating opportunities:

• cleaning of the Centre’s offices and training hall
• car-washing services

The Residential Programme Manager coordinates a number of training opportunities for Centre clients with partners and other organisations. These include life orientation and  skills development programmes, such as parenting and assertiveness training, home based care, computer training, first-aid training and chef and canteen assistant training.