This booklet was developed by Mamelani Projects, a community development organisation in South Africa. The booklet outlines Mamelani’s approach to Youth Development and providing transitional support to young people as they transition out of Child and Youth Care Centres (CYCCs). This booklet is designed to be used by practitioners - such as child and youth care workers, social workers and programme managers - who work directly with youth who are transitioning from residential care. The booklet also targets people responsible for designing and implementing programmes to support youth in their transitions.
The booklet introduces key terms, outlines Mamelani’s approach to Youth Development in three primary pillars and ten helpful practices, outlines the organisation’s approach to Transitional Support, defines the core components of transitional support including a transitional checklist, provides a guide to implementing transitional support interventions, and concludes with helpful contacts and resources. The lessons learned and ideas shared have come out of Mamelani’s work with young care leavers over the last decade. The purpose of this booklet is to provide a framework that can guide others who want to strengthen the services they provide to support youth transitioning out of institutional care.
