SHAMMAH SAFE HOUSE

Late at night, when social workers' offices are closed, when shelters are at capacity, and when a child has been found abandoned on a street or brought to a police station by a concerned member of the public — the question of where that child goes is not rhetorical. It is urgent. Shammah Safe House exists to answer that question.

Founded in 2006 by Bobby and Katharine Jonkers and operating from 12 Coalbrook Street in South Hills, Johannesburg (a suburb in the City of Johannesburg South region), Shammah is registered as NPO 068-930. Its name comes from the Hebrew "Shammah" — meaning "God is there" — and its operational identity is built around that presence: a warm, caring, immediate response to the needs of children at risk, at any hour.

The Afterhours Gap

Shammah describes itself as "an afterhours reception centre" — and this is the defining feature of its service model. South Africa's child protection system depends on social workers and DSD officials during office hours. SAPS can refer children to the Department of Social Development, but after hours, on weekends, and on public holidays, that referral chain breaks down. The Community Policing Forum at Moffatview Police Station knows Shammah, trusts Shammah, and refers children there when the rest of the system is unavailable. A counsellor on duty assesses each child's needs, puts SAPS in touch with the Safe House's social workers on call, and ensures the child is not simply held at a police station.

Who Shammah Serves

Shammah provides care for abandoned children, lost children, orphaned children, and children involved in trafficking. The organisation also explicitly addresses the impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic — which has left substantial numbers of South African children without parents — as a driver of the vulnerability it responds to.

What Shammah Provides

Children received at Shammah are placed in a warm, caring environment — not an institution, but a home-like space — where:

• Comprehensive assessments of each child's needs are conducted;
• Medical services are accessed and provided;
• Trauma counselling is delivered to help children begin to process what they have experienced.

Research cited by the organisation notes that inadequate parenting creates devastating long-term psychological problems, including poor capacity for emotional bonding — which in turn contributes to the destabilisation of communities. Shammah's model treats the child's emotional needs as central, not peripheral.

The Community Homes Model

Shammah's vision is built around community-based homes rather than large residential facilities. Volunteer community parents — "mothers" in the community who are carefully selected and trained — provide care in a family environment. Children are placed with appropriate short- or long-term family care based on the assessment conducted at Shammah. Child Welfare and the Department of Social Development provide statutory services and work toward permanent placements for each child.

Future Development

Shammah has identified several expansion goals: establishing more safe homes; establishing a skills development centre; establishing a soup kitchen; and developing a back-to-school programme for children whose education has been disrupted. The most pressing immediate need is a larger premises to serve more children.

Relevance to GBV Survivors

Shammah's primary beneficiaries are children — but the organisation is highly relevant to GBV survivors in the following ways. Women fleeing domestic violence who have children with them need to know where their children can be held safely if accommodation cannot be secured immediately. Children who have witnessed domestic violence are themselves trauma survivors. And children exposed to trafficking — which often intersects with household GBV — need exactly the specialised, trauma-informed response that Shammah provides.

Shammah Safe House: 12 Coalbrook Street, South Hills, Johannesburg, 2197. Phone: +27 81 497 7053 (Katharine Jonkers). Email: love@shammahsafehouse.co.za. NPO 068-930. Facebook: @shammahsafehouse. Website: shammahsafehouse.co.za. Founded 2006.