1. To provide security and a home to street children
The sense of security for any young child is most important. A street child also needs a place to call home. A small place where he/she can keep his/her belongings, no matter how few, and have the knowledge that the door is always open to him/her.

2. To provide facilities for cleanliness
Basic hygiene can only be taught to a child by those who care. Guidance and information on cleanliness and nutrition are given to all children who avail of any "CHILD" centre facility.

3. To provide literacy programmes
Most of the children we see daily, working in hotels, mechanic shops, factories... or just picking rags and begging, are illiterate, and will stay that way if not given the chance to learn. The "CHILD" system teaches basic literacy and nurtures their willingness and ability to learn.

4. To provide medical aid and supervision
The majority of children on our streets have little or no idea about medical treatment, least of all MDS, and cannot go to a doctor because they have insufficient money to pay the bills. The result is that most of them just die in some dirty corner somewhere due to malnutrition, dehydration and infection. The "CHILD" System provides medical care leading to complete health and fitness for their future.

5. To provide love and affection
The main problem that these poor children face is one of rejection. They trust no-one, put faith in no-one, and will not ask for help from anyone. They build a defence around themselves that is almost impossible to penetrate. However, with constant love and affection, this barrier melts away... and the real nature of the child shines through like a golden ray of warm sunshine.

6. To provide a working model
To provide a model example for other organisations and Governments, wanting to run Street Child Assistance Programmes so that they can benefit from proven methods, and develop meaningful programmes of their own, without any waste of resources or delay, and with limited failure and mistakes.

PRINCIPLE GOALS OF SKCV CHILD SYSTEM
Strengthening Centres For Street and Working children
It has long been the aim of SKCV Children's Trust to create an infrastructure that can provide an environment of security with facilities and opportunities for an all round education for those young Street Children who, due to no fault of their own, have found themselves in a pitiful condition of disease, malnutrition and general abuse.

Strengthening Centres are there:-
1. To provide a meaningful, healthy and happy home, and future to street/slum and working children in need, regardless of caste or creed.
2. To give equal opportunity to all participants to learn a suitable skill that will ensure a satisfactory lifestyle for them in the future.
3. To provide full education to all participants by the tutorial method, thus taking into consideration all propensities and possible defects.
4. To teach the wonders of the world to all participants, by both theoretical and practical means.
5. To ensure that full knowledge of preventive medicine, as well as applied cures for all common diseases, be understood by all participants.
6. To provide a secure and solid future to each and every child requesting shelter and guidance, who, otherwise, would never have the chance of learning a trade, going to school, or having access to good health care.

OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF THE "CHILD" SYSTEM
Making Contact
The best method of introducing the children to your "CHILD" projects is to go and meet them personally and invite them, then let them come on their own. Give them a map or a landmark. Once you have a few children coming regularly, you can send them out to bring other children. This is the most effective method.

Semi-Residential Street Child Night Rescue Centres
These centres cater to the needs of children who sleep on the streets and platforms. Invite them to sleep safely at your centre, and provide a simple meal, if possible. Keep a registration book, and make the kids feel very important about signing the book each night. The children's physical appearance can be cleaned up, medical and dental checkups can also be performed. Slowly find out their activities in detail, and offer constant encouragement and advice to them about the difference between life on the street, and that available at the centres... and beyond. Their reactions to certain aspects such as classes in literacy, care and attention, cleanliness and punctuality training etc. should be very carefully monitored.

Semi-Residential Street Child Rescue Education Centres
These are your centres for psychological repair. By now, the children are cleaner, healthier and happier. More serious children may express to you that they do not want to beg any more, pick rags, or work in a filthy mechanic shop for long hours and meager pay. They, almost certainly, will not want to sleep out on the street.

Now that they have made a decision, you can work on inner problems. This entails inviting them to stay permanently. There will, of course, be others who are improving, but still transient, so separate them in different dormitories, but do not make a different programme. Various classes can be implemented, but these must be non-formal and fun, and open to anyone. Show them videos regularly to satisfy their rampant desire for cinema, but be selective. Street kids love Laurel and Hardy, Charlie Chaplin, and cartoons etc. Laughter satisfies them, and is excellent group therapy. Take the children on outings to the next stage projects, as well as on picnics to interesting places as often as you can.

Research Programmes
Comprehensive street child research programmes (both for boys and for girls) are necessary to study the problems the children encounter on the street in your city, and to determine whether they can adapt to the "CHILD" Rescue Centre programmes. This is crucial to their further education and security. These projects will require at least one year of operation to reveal realistic and lasting data.

Residential Strengthening Centres
Educational and behavioral improvements are concentrated here. Remember that street life is like an addiction. After you determine that a child is giving up the strong desire for street life, be extremely careful that no situation arises that may create a relapse. This can easily happen, especially through the inexperience of new staff, or bullying by an older child. Life for the street child now has some meaning. It is up to you to maintain and increase the child's desire for a better future.

Healthy and secure, the child can now look forward, and forget the past. But there is still a fine line of discipline. Take great pains and time to explain every detail in a given situation. Let them ask questions and even vent their feelings. The children appreciate your trouble, although they may not show it. Unfortunately, most people cannot understand street children, and expect total respect and discipline on the first day. We know differently, and have to be ready to face their initial hostility or lack of a positive response forthcoming. They will almost certainly lie to you or even steal from you. Do not be dismayed.

Management Committees
Be very careful at all times how you deal with the children. If they leave now, they probably will not come back to you, or any other help centre in the future. Keep the programmes regulated, spend time with each child, encourage them and give them assurance about the future. Meet them in the classrooms, in the dormitories and take them out sometimes to meet donors or officials. Create a system of peer management with Action Committees (12-16 yrs), and Management Committees (16-18 yrs) and staff trainees (18 2lyrs) [ages need not be fixed, use your own judgment). Have them appoint their own assistants. Give a little special programme to them, a uniform, and a lot of responsibility. They will become your future managerial staff, if you treat and train them properly. This management system can be employed in all centres.

Create Management Committees made up of more senior (in maturity... not necessarily in age) children and give them the feeling that they are making all the decisions. You just sit by the side, watch and guide them carefully. You will see their natural talents soon develop. Make sure the committees meet at least once a week and reward them with prizes or outings. These committee members will soon be doing most of the management work and, if you train them nicely and patiently, they will do all the work, leaving you to concentrate on Public Relations for your organisation. Eventually they will take over stages and departments of your organisation.

Try to recognise those "core members" who may have decided to stay with your organisation and join the faculty, rather than move out into the world. This is not so common but in such cases, these young men and women will be the most trusted and dedicated people on your staff. At SKCV such people have formed "The Future Group" which now manage everything.

Vocational Training Centres
This is the final stage of the "CHILD" system, apart from your advice bureau for those who have completed the system, and now have a family and a business of their own. The Vocational Training Centre provides a 3-4 year course (perhaps less for more simple skills), in up to fifteen comprehensive, but simple, workshops. The children (now grown up) obtain complete training in a skill of their choice, as well as theoretical knowledge, and a continuation of ordinary education as required. Management in business and financial training will also be given during the course. If, and when, there is a desire for marriage, it should be encouraged for mature students. It is our opinion that a loving family situation such as this, will definitely NOT create street children. Loans can also be arranged for your graduates to set up small businesses and homes.

Income Generation and Project Sustainability
One of the most important aspects of charitable projects like your "CHILD" strengthening Village and other "CHILD" projects, is the future support and development. The project can be supported by various income generation schemes. The following schemes could be put into operation, initially:
a) Printing works: greeting cards, calendars, address books, orders from firms, companies, banks and government etc. for letterhead, envelopes, brochures and textbooks, packaging supplies etc.
b) Products and materials from Vocational Training Workshops ("CHILD" System Fifth Phase).
c) Agricultural products for sale to local markets and wholesalers.
d) Dairy products for sale to local market and wholesalers and Government outlets.
e) Interest from secure investments generated from:
i) donations received from public, charitable funding organisations, or private individuals and companies
ii) profits made from above schemes in the Corpus of the Trust
iii) grants from Government of India and other official sources
iv) Other International and National Agencies
vi) Corpus Fund Investments made by your organisation. Try to aim for a Corpus of Rs.50 Lacs over a period of ten years. This should sustain most programmes.

Replicability
In the field of Street/Working Child assistance, there is a tremendous need, throughout the world, for a tried and tested system, that has been seen to actually provide the facility and attention that these children need in order to be convinced to give up their life on the street, and become part of mainstream society. The system should provide them a relatively good education, a secure and confident mood, and suitable training in a skill or trade that will enable them to support a family, and perhaps help and train other young street children in the future. SKCV Children's Trust has been working in this field for many years, and is convinced that, through the "CHILD" System, government and non-government organisations, and others who care world-wide, will be provided with a blueprint for development of programmes that will lead to this end. This, coupled with good staff, financial stability, as well as, comprehensive general education at the grassroots level in the city slums and rural areas, will definitely help to alleviate the problems of street children both in a curative sense... and in the preventive sense.