If you love small babies and young children this project is perfect for you! Your work at the orphanage in the temple town of Madurai is very hands on and rewarding and you will fall in love instantly with the children with smiles that will melt your heart. You really will make a difference to their lives.

“Sing ‘Jingle Bells’ to Priya and ‘round & round the garden’ to Subitha, they love it!” Meera Ravindran

SUMMARY FACTFILE:

Start Dates: All year round - you choose your start and finish dates!

Duration: Minimum stay 2 weeks and up to 1 year, subject to visa requirements

Requirements: You don't need any qualifications to do this project, just lots of enthusiasm and ability to give disadvantage

d children love, care and attention.

Price: From £795 for 2 weeks, ranging to £1,795 for 12 weeks. Full Price List

What's included: ► Accommodation ► Food ► Meeting you at the Airport ► Transfer to your accommodation ►Transport to and from your project ►Full pre-departure support ►Local in-country team support and backup ► 24-hr emergency support ► Two free T-shirts.

What's not included: Flights, Insurance, Cost of Visas (if a visa is required, but we'll provide necessary documents and assistance), Return transfer to airport.

Who can do this Project? All our projects are open to all nationalities. Unless otherwise stated, you need to be aged between 17 and 70+

PROJECT OVERVIEW:

The main care centre where we work is at a home for victims of female infanticide and abandoned children. Their mission is to help them first to survive and then to ensure the right of the child to a family. There are around 28 children at the orphanage, but this number changes frequently as new children are brought in or are adopted.

All of the children’s backgrounds are heartbreaking; some of them have been found abandoned in nearby churches or temples and others are surrendered by their parents. The children are all in desperate need of tender loving care ... and this is where you come in!

“My time at the orphanage was fab and the kids are all one of a kind, (they’re happiest when they’re being the naughtiest they can be! "- Laura Marsh

WORK CONTENT:

Your work will be very hands-on as you will be dealing with all of the children - be prepared to get very grubby!! Your work load and responsibilities will depend on your abilities and attitude to your work, and you'll assume more responsibilities as you grow in confidence and as the staff's confidence in you grows. You should be supervised all of the time while you are there, and you will be given help and directions. Your work may include some or all of the following:

► Helping the staff wash and dress the older children
► Bottle feed the babies
► Changing nappies
► Feeding the older children
► Teaching basic English and Maths
► Teaching the older children nursery rhymes
► Organising and facilitating games for the children

By playing games with the children you also encourage confidence building. It also encourages children to use English in an informal way, and even with the younger children it gives them exposure to the language at an early age. Playing games may seem irrelevant on the surface, but it helps to build up team spirit and skills, leadership skills, dexterity and quick thinking, and a healthy competitive spirit. It also gives them a more developed ability to interact with their peers.

For many of the older children, you are able to integrate education into games and also help with homework etc. Where children are not taught at the orphanage you will help these on their return from school in the afternoon.

Volunteers normally work at the orphanage in the mornings when it is at its busiest and the additional help that you provide is really appreciated. You can take your lunch with you and eat with the staff and finish after the babies are fed at 2pm. You can choose to work longer hours but it is very exhausting and challenging work and you may appreciate the afternoon off to relax and unwind.

"Your tasks are fairly routine and repetitive, but really you’re there to give the children individual attention that the full-time nurses don’t always have time to provide. That’s the most important thing you’ll do there – may not feel like much, but it’s so important for them as some of the children’s’ social skills and ability to interact with people are a bit poor. Plus it’s very rewarding to just be there to make them laugh and feel a bit loved! Aliki Salter

You may also have the opportunity to work at a boys home in the evenings. The boys are aged between 7 to 18 years of age and all of them attend local schools during the day and return to the home in the evenings. The boys are semi-orphans and they are resident at the home and go back to their families only in the holidays. When they arrive back after school, they have a few chores and then there is an hour of play time. At this time you can go along and interact with them by organising games (they love cricket and football!) or just going to chat to them.

When the games session is over there is an hour and a half of study time. You can choose to stay and help them with their homework at this time or help them practice their conversational English. Again, this is a very rewarding project and the boys with be overjoyed to meet you.