User:Purple.hooded.wytch/SKIP

Students for Kids International Projects (SKIP)
Registered charity: 1099804

Introduction
SKIP is a student led registered charity, working to support child welfare and the personal and professional development of future healthcare students.

Their ultimate aim is to not be needed…

For vulnerable children to be well supported and cared for by their communities

For healthcare students to be compassionate and well educated on the truths and realities of global and cultural health issues

History
SKIP was established in November 2002 by a group of healthcare students from the Universities of Birmingham and Cardiff. The idea behind SKIP came from a project run by Cardiff medical students called BACCUP (Belarussian Aid for Children Cardiff Undergraduate Program), which now exists as the Cardiff branch of SKIP.

Within 7 months a research trip and a 12 week pilot project involving 60 healthcare students from the University of Birmingham was completed in Kanakantapa, Zambia.

Within a year, charity status was obtained and SKIP National was created. After a year of SKIP Nationals’ existence, the first ever SKIP National Conference was held. The conference was a massive success and 9 new branches of SKIP established across the UK.

SKIP has 11 established branches at the following universities; Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Newcastle, Swansea, Warwick, Oxford, Bart’s London, UCL, Southampton and Bristol. In 2006 the External Volunteering Scheme was launched; offering the opportunity for home and international students, studying at University where there is currently no SKIP branch, to partake in SKIP’s current established projects. At the October Conference 2007, SKIP took on three new branches at HYMS, Edinburgh and St Georges Universities.

Goals
1.	Goals For The Organisation

1.1.	To establish international children's projects at all healthcare schools in the United Kingdom.

1.2.	For the projects to be targeted in areas of the world where children need help the most.

1.3.	To ensure maximum utilisation of time, energy, and money into active care and aid for the children.

1.4.	To avoid preaching, and where appropriate to teach and guide by example

1.5.	Short-term - the immediate welfare and care of the children

1.6.	Long-term – community and local development, infrastructural support for vulnerable children and economic aid

1.7.	Both short-term aims and long-term aims should ideally be in consultation, cooperation and harmony with the local community.

1.8.	To not be needed – for all projects to lead to productive outcomes and pass responsibility and ownership to local communities as appropriate.

1.9.	To provide an effective infrastructural framework for communication, support, feedback and mutual learning between all our branches and projects.

1.10.	To practice in an evidence based manner – to collect and collate information and knowledge that enables effective and ongoing project development and evaluation.

2.	Goals For The Child

2.1.	To act first and foremost in the interest of the child

2.2.	To protect the child from harm - from all forms of abuse, neglect or exploitation.

2.3.	To treat each child as an individual and encourage others to do so

2.4.	To protect and maintain the dignity and quality of life of each child

2.5.	For children and communities to benefit from the training and expertise of students (and professionals) from all disciplines of healthcare.

2.6.	To improve the health, welfare and education of vulnerable children.

2.7.	To encourage the concepts of love, care and attention to be recognized as fundamental rights for all children

2.8.	To work towards continuity and sustainability of care - not just during the summer programme, but all year round.

2.9.	To develop a holistic approach to the care of the child.

3.	Goals For The Student

3.1.	To increase awareness of global health issues amongst healthcare students

3.2.	To increase awareness of different social and political regimes influencing healthcare and social care around the world

3.3.	To make the volunteering process as accessible and simple as possible for healthcare students

3.4.	To involve students from all disciplines of healthcare.

3.5.	To further consolidate the ethos of practical multidisciplinary teamwork at an early stage in their careers - to recognise the expertise, experience and limitations of individuals, and work effectively and collectively towards meeting their objectives

3.6.	To have an understanding of the economic and political regimes, customs, traditions, and beliefs of the community as a whole. This is to ensure that, where possible, a more holistic approach is adopted towards the children and that they are cared for more in the context of their local environment.

3.7.	For students to be able to carry out voluntary work as SAFELY as is possible

3.8.	To hopefully inspire students to do this type of work again - 80% of student volunteers continue their commitment to voluntary work after graduating

3.9.	To facilitate the improvement of personal and professional development for all students partaking in SKIP

3.10.	To allow students to actively and autonomously participate in project development and management

Ultimate Goal

For individual projects, once established and effective, to not exist-to cease to be needed.

Why?

Because SKIP believes that effective help should seek to find long-term solutions to existing problems, as well as providing attention to more immediate needs.

How?

By adopting a ‘solution focused’ attitude. SKIP seeks to involve members of the local community, to encourage moral responsibility, enthusiasm, and recognition of the needs of the children; highlighting the point that it is a collective responsibility to maintain an acceptable quality of life for the children.

Infrastructure
Executive board

SKIP is governed by an Executive Board of Directors which includes the charitable Trustees. The Executive Board is responsible for overseeing the organisations activities and ratifying any new policies or programs. They are responsible for upholding the constitution, as well as monitoring and supporting the National Committe.

National Committee

SKIP's National Committee is responsible for overseeing the day to day running of SKIP, ensuring that branch and project activities are well supported and in line with SKIP's constitution, policies and ethos.

SKIP National

The National committee and Executive Board are conjointly responsible for ensuring that Branches are well trained and capable of training their volunteers and suitably managing their projects. There are two National conferences a year in which branch committees receive intesified training and feedback.

SKIP Branches

As of 2007, SKIP has 14 UK University based branches, with projects supported in nine different countries. The Branches each develop and support overseas community integrated projects in areas of disadvantage and need. In particular the work of the projects focuses on supporting the health, welfare and education of vulberable children. Each branch focuses on the development of one project until they are ready to begin phasing out and responsibility for any interventions initiated has been successfully handed over to the local community and/or local partner organisation.

Each branch has a committee who are responsible for furthering the objectives of their project and recruiting and training volunteers to work to develop the project during their summer holidays and other suitable times of year.

SKIP now has the following branches working in the following countries:

SKIP Barts:               India

SKIP Birmingham:          Zambia

SKIP Bristol:             South Africa

SKIP Cardiff:             Belarus

SKIP Edinburgh (pre-pilot phase)

SKIP Glasgow:             Malawi

SKIP HYMS (pre-pilot phase)

SKIP Newcastle:           Sri Lanka

SKIP Oxford:              Thailand

SKIP Southampton:         Madagascar

SKIP St. Georges (pre-pilot phase)

SKIP Swansea:             Belarus

SKIP UCL:                 Ghana

SKIP Warwick:             Sri Lanka

Volunteers

SKIP volunteers consist of multidisciplinary teams of healthcare students, including medical, nursing, physiotherapy and dentistry students, as well as BMedSci students.