With the support of the Vodafone Malta Foundation, the Equal Partners Foundation ran a successful Summer Club for youngsters between the ages of 13 to 16. The programme ran a varied set of activities including drama, music, sports and community living to help the youngsters develop skills which aid them to access mainstream secondary and post-secondary education and gain skills for living an independent life.

“The Summer Club is all about informal education,” said Louisa Grech from Equal Partners Foundation. “With the generous help of the Vodafone Malta Foundation we stepped up our lifeskills activities which this year have also included healthy cooking and diet, safety in the kitchen, road safety, and shopping and the use of money. The results have been outstanding. The youngsters made friends, worked as a team and built on on their experiences and knowledge. They learnt to appreciate each other’s qualities and abilities. Their parents were very pleased with their progress and have noted an incredible improvement in their communication skills, their behaviour and their relationships, as well as their ability to live more independently in the community.”

“One of the Vodafone Malta Foundation’s objectives is to help increase one’s ability to cope with daily events,” said Gemma Mifsud Bonnici, Chairperson of the Vodafone Malta Foundation. “We are impressed with the success of this Summer Club. It is so gratifying to see these young people participate so eagerly and to evidence their willingness to learn and experience an independent life.”

Equal Partners Foundation has been working in the local community for the past 12 years and is currently supporting close to 250 persons. The Foundation believes that children with a disability who have been included in all aspects of society throughout their lives will perform better than peers in a secluded setting. The Foundation’s funding comes from contributions from parents and fund-raising. Around 50 educators help with running costs by giving over 7,000 hours of community work annually to the Foundation.

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