The Big Umbrella house, Kathmandu.

 

The Big Umbrella House (Kopila Kunj) is a Residence Rehabilitation Center for former street children in Kathmandu Nepal. It’s an extension project of the Drop in Center Kopila Ghar under CHILD Street to School org. (CHILD STS).

This project could not have been made possible with out the amazing staff working around the clock from Child STS. The Big Umbrella feels it an honour to have such people to work with and to have such a dedicated team working on the ground in Nepal

The Big Umbrella House (Kopila Kunj) is a long- term rehabilitation center specifically operated for street children, aged 6-17.

The Big Umbrella is committed to the principle that children should live free from poverty and exploitation.

This being said, there are between 6,000- 8,000 children living on the streets of Kathmandu, falling into the arms of petty crime and drug abuse. These children are forced to live by a substandard quality of life, with little hope for their future.

The Big Umbrella house, established 6th of October 2011, works on the front line to reduce this devastation, creating new futures and  opportunities for these children.

The Big Umbrella House is now home to 20 children, all of whom have passed their entrance exams and attend school daily. We feel that this is our greatest achievement as these children are no longer living street kids.

Most importantly, at the house the children are taught essential life skills. This enables them to continue on independently after their time at The Big Umbrella House, ensuring they are able to maintain a stable future for themselves.

The Big Umbrella family has expanded and therefore needed to  relocate to a bigger house. The new home provides these growing
boys with an adequate amount of space and a garden to play in, producing a child friendly environment.

The home is now large enough to house up to around 30 children at a time, plus volunteers, a house manager and a Didi, a house mother who helps to cook, clean, tend the garden and also provides a maternal figure for the children.

 

The Big Umbrella house supplies these children with the love, support and nurturing every child needs and deserves.

Without this help, the children are left on the streets and have little or no hope of securing a happy future for themselves.

 

Images from The Big Umbrella House opening, 6th October, 2011.

MAIN OBJECTIVE

  • Increase more and more referrals of the street children to the rehabilitation centre from the Drop-in Center Kopila Ghar.
  • Conduct Family assessment
  • Conduct Family re-integration and regularly monitor the process of re-integration
  • Conduct systematic initial NFE ( Non Formal Education) assessment of the street children referred in the children home .
  • Admit children to school and regular monitor the child school performance.
  • Strengthen the day to day psychosocial and rehabilitative activities of the rehabilitation center for the children.
  • Ensure child participation  through children regular meeting  in order to review their daily timetable likes and dislikes, plan for outing, decision making process, policy implementation process, engaging them in cooking activities, cleaning and personal hygiene program etc.
  • Organize regular counseling program, therapeutic activities like art therapy, play therapy and music therapy.
  • Organize  awareness based program in an effective manner.
  • Conduct regular exposure visits for the children in different places to ensure mental health evolution and amelioration of the children.

 

PSYCHOLOGICAL SUPPORT

 

Art Therapy
Art therapy allows the children to express their troubled feelings without words. Their drawings will show us their past life, their dreams and fears but also eventual signs of maltreatment and abuse.


Play Therapy
Play therapy provides the children the way to express their experiences and feelings. The play therapy helps the child to overcome internal anxieties, aggressions and change disturbing behavior. The child plays freely while therapist observes, asks questions and makes suggestions.


Music Therapy
Music affects children emotions. Music therapy helps the children to express their feelings , to release internal tensions, to open up and finally to relax. Music can also be helpful to increase academic skills of the children.


Individual Psychotherapy
In case of psychological disorders our psychologist supports the child with an individual psychotherapy.