Entries for the annual South African Early Childhood Awards, of which Grahamstown's Little Flower Day Care Centre was a winner last year, opened this week to community practitioners, centres and organisations that wish to enter or nominate others that have demonstrated best practice and exemplary participation in the sector.
Entries for the annual South African Early Childhood Awards, of which Grahamstown's Little Flower Day Care Centre was a winner last year, opened this week to community practitioners, centres and organisations that wish to enter or nominate others that have demonstrated best practice and exemplary participation in the sector.
The categories are for best early childhood development centre of the year, best practitioner, best programme for children with disabilities, best trainer, best non-centre-based programme, and best publication.
The awards follow a process of nomination, adjudication and verification site visits.
The awards ceremonies are staged in the provinces that culminate in the national awards in March next year.
Award-winners are eligible for cash prizes for their organisations as well as developmental or scholarships opportunities for the practitioners.
The National Development Agency, the custodian of the awards, has partnered with the South African Congress for Early Childhood Development, the departments of social development, basic education and health, Unicef and the SABC Education to ensure that all early childhood development centre policy stakeholders are represented and play a role in recognising sector services and programmes that benefit young children throughout the country.
Last year, the 11th year of the awards, R550 000 was disbursed by the NDA to award-winners.
Entries are available at all NDA provincial and advisory centres in all provinces, South African Congress for Early Childhood Development offices, national Department of Social Development and Unicef websites.
Entries close on 30 September. In last year's awards, the Little Flower Day Care Centre took second place in the category for best early childhood development centre provincial winners.
Ikhaya la Bantwana in Mqanduli took first place in the category.
Other Eastern Cape winners included Dawn Brochenin of Ikhaya la Bantwana in Mqanduli (best practitioner), and the Carel du Toit Centre in East London (best early development centre programme for children with disabilities.
