Ayuboan! which means hello in sinhalese
I will be volunteering at a special needs school and care centre which provides a home, education and recreation for disabled children and adults.
Like many other developing countries Sri Lanka struggles to care for its physically and learning disabled citizens. As a result, many people with ‘special needs’ spend their lives largely unloved and uncared for. The project I am working on helps to provide its residents with a worthwhile place in society by providing an education and some ‘hard’ skills.

The centre is based on the edge of Galle. It provides a residential home for approximately 65 people aged five to fifty. The younger ones all attend the special needs school that teaches up to 120 children from both the home and the surrounding area. The children have learning difficulties and associated behavioural issues, while some will also have physical disabilities.

The school also houses its own autistic unit which currently teaches a small number of children. It is of a high standard and is run on similar lines to those in the UK.

Activities in the main house revolve around helping to equip the residents with skills that can make them feel they are of value to their communities. By helping to develop basic skills that can produce an income, a feeling of self worth can be restored. To develop those skills English is taught daily along with computer instruction, art, handicraft and horticulture.