Sport4Socialisation, S4S for short, was established in 2007 and aims to improve the lives of children with disabilities through sports.
Their mission is to create an environment in which disabilities are fully accepted so that children with disabilities will have the same opportunities as other children and can flourish in society. The organisation pursues this by breaking the barriers of social isolation, in which so many people with disabilities find themselves. By including children with disabilities in activities with their peers they become participating members of their community!
S4S programmes include:
– Adapted and inclusive physical activities
– Parent Support Groups
– Livelihood development programmes
– Direct Child Assistance (medical interventions)
– Physiotherapy and counselling
– Formal education
– HIV/AIDS and disability awareness
The organisation has been the recipient of various awards over the last few years, including the international Beyond Sport Award for Best New Project in 2010. Recently they were nominated for the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund Best Practice Market (2012) and the Rockefeller Innovation Award (2013). In June 2013 S4S won the BNdeStem Ontwikkelingsprijs.