During the past five years, Yarraville Special Developmental School (YSDS) has developed a special bond with Seddon Community Bank and local businesses through our Community Pitch, their heart-warming and inspiring stories regularly seeing them as the number one recipient of donations at the event.
Like many community organisations facing challenges during the Covid crisis last year, YSDS was faced not only with the inability to fundraise but also increased expenses due to costs of PPE and changes to staffing requirements.
With 60 students from 5 – 18 years of age, YSDS aim is to provide education, independence and social programs for students with a moderate to profound intellectual disability. Their purpose is to engage their students in innovative and high quality education and social programs in a friendly and caring environment.
Their latest program “Learn to Play” requires specialised toys to develop language, social and emotional skills, so the team at the branch were pleased to be able to provide funding to purchase toys to support the program. Davina D’Menzie , vice-principal at the school, has since been pleased to report that the program has been a huge success and will continue to be expanded.
This week, Esha & Suzanne were welcomed to YSDS for a tour to see the program in action as well as many of the other amazing programs the staff have created for their students. Both were completely overwhelmed by the beautiful environment as well as the wide array of innovative and inspiring programs, obviously created by a very dedicated and hard-working staff.
To continue the ongoing development of these valuable, specialised programs, the teachers aim to continue their fundraising efforts in 2021 – and the team at the branch have already come up with some creative ideas not just to support the programs but raise awareness of this amazing, local school.
Watch this space…
Photo: Davina D’Menzie (vice-principal) & Esha Shrestha in front of a mosaic of the school’s logo, created by the year 12 students in their last year of school in 2020.
Learn more about the school – Yarraville Special Developmental School
