Information about us

History of Impilo

Impilo was started by two social workers who were unhappy about the long delays sometimes experienced in finding permanent families for needy babies. They established a nursery as a place of safety in their Orange Grove offices, and opened its doors to babies on 1st November 2003. They also worked in partnership with The Love of Christ Ministries (TLC) to place babies being cared for at TLC. At the first AGM they were able to report that 34 children had already been placed in adoption.

Early in 2007, Impilo was enabled through the generosity of our donors to put a deposit on our own property, and we moved to our present home in Leigh Avenue, Fairvale.

Our purpose

To ensure that vulnerable babies and toddlers in need of care are provided with a Place of Safety in a homely environment, and their physical, medical, social, emotional and psychological needs are met in the transitional period before being returned to their parents or extended family or placed in an adoptive home. The majority of children have been abandoned, orphaned or born to HIV positive parents. All children are from previously disadvantaged communities.

Impilo provides counselling to the biological families of the children referred, and attempts to educate parents to plan for the future of their children in a responsible, long term way. The counselling process focuses on permanency planning, and incorporates extended family into decision making about the future of the children. Our objective is to place children as soon as possible into a healthy family environment. Reconstruction services are offered to the family, as placement with biological family is the preferred option for a child. If this is not possible, alternative care is facilitated with the emphasis on permanency planning. Long-term foster care is sometimes the answer, but Impilo usually tries to place children in the stability of a permanent adoptive family.

Impilo's purpose is primarily preventative. In order to cut down on the incidence of abandonment, parents are educated in the options available to them when they are unable to look after their child, either due to financial constraints or ill health. Longterm planning for the children is emphasised, and alternative placements such as adoption and fostercare are fully explained and discussed with the biological parents. Research has shown that institutional care is not a healthy environment for any child, and should be a last resort in planning for a child's future. In order to find permanent families for these children, there are various programmes to recruit adoptive and foster parents. Families are screened, prepared and supported before placement, and aftercare and follow-up services are offered. Impilo also has formal and informal agreements with other agencies who recruit prospective adoptive families.