Christel House South Africa - 2022 Annual Report

Widening Our Impact

CEO’s Year in Review

Synchronicity, albeit noncausal, remains an interesting thing…. As we were planning the “children’s book” theme for our annual report, our Board Chair, Ian Russell, published his second book, The Upside of Being Myself and Other Leadership Stories. In the book, Ian retells the story of the Little Red Hen, but through the lens of effective leadership. Imagine our delight at the dovetail!

2022 was our back-to-the-future year. It was packed with beginnings, once-agains and endings. Soon after the year started, the provincial systemic tests once again benchmarked our Grades 3, 6 and 9 Mathematics and English proficiencies as significantly higher than their peers, with Grade 6 Maths at 100%. Somewhere mid-year all Covid restrictions were lifted and so did our spirits. Our teachers picked up where we left off and in no time the robotics, soccer and fencing teams qualified to compete outside of Cape Town, our junior school performed in the Shakespeare festival, our donors and supporters participated in the Virtual Fitness Challenge and on Heritage Day, our five Simunye Schools crossed the wealth divide to spend a day making potjiekos together. Nothing, not even the extremely disruptive loadshedding was going to stop us as we ended the year in style with our first in-person Special Assembly in two years. Shortly on its heels came the news that our matrics once again had a

100% pass rate, 89% with a Bachelor’s pass. Our 26 academic distinctions (two with 90%!) wrapped up the year with a big bow.

In 2023, we plan to pay specific attention internally to building agency and higher-order thinking skills in our children while we remain an intentionally ITenabled school. Youth Bridge, our 10X intervention in youth unemployment, saw its first pilot concluded. This will pave the way for the 2023 launch, where we will focus on capitalising on our strong partnerships to unlock the potential in our country’s youth. We have to teach more youth to fish, and we know how to do that.

We remain grateful to all our donors, volunteers and supporters and we are excited to share with you that the time has come to have another Christel House in South Africa! We look forward to approach old and new friends in 2023 to establish a framework within which this can happen as soon as possible to pave the way for more children to have a seat at the table of life.

Adri Marais, Chief Executive Officer Christel House SA

Chair Report

“Teachers open the door, but you must enter by yourself.” This old adage is one which neatly fits the Christel House ethos, and is one upon which the success of the school depends. The engagement of our students with the academic curriculum, the arts agenda and the sports arena at Christel House never ceases to amaze me.

2022 saw a welcome return to a school year that was uninterrupted by external challenges that dominated the previous couple of years, and this has enabled the students and teachers to really focus on what is important – education.

In turn, the Board has been able to draw a breath, and has been working closely with Christel House International to see how we can widen the impact that Christel House SA has on its communities. Our impact on the lives of our 1 000+ students is profound, but with a population of over 20 million under the age of 18 in South Africa, we are a pinprick of light in stormy skies.

Widening and scaling the impact we can make has become a key priority for us, and during the next few years, you will see Christel House SA very intentionally executing two key strategies. Firstly, we have developed a ‘bridging’ programme for young adults who have not been fortunate enough

to have attended Christel House. This will be rolled out at scale from 2023 onwards. Secondly, we are looking to replicate the success of Christel House by building further schools in South Africa.

Just as teachers open those doors for students, so sponsors and donors open the door for Christel House to thrive. For those supporters who already invest in our dream, thank you. It makes all the difference. For those that wish to help us to build our vision of more schools and greater impact, now is the time to open your door to us and embark upon the journey of a lifetime.

Ian Russell, Chair Christel House SA

Board of Directors

Adri Marais

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER: CHRISTEL HOUSE SA

Experience: Business Development, Tertiary Education and Social Transformation

Bart Peterson

PRESIDENT & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER: CHRISTEL HOUSE INTERNATIONAL

Experience: Former Senior VP, Eli Lilly and Company; Former Mayor of Indianapolis

Chris Buchanan

MARKETING COMMITTEE

Experience: Director at Dell; Experience in Sales, Marketing, Emerging Markets

Baba Mogase

MARKETING COMMITTEE

Experience: Business and Marketing specialist

Laila Naidoo

MARKETING COMMITTEE AND HUMAN RESOURCES AND REMUNERATION COMMITTEE

Experience: Executive Director; Experience in Strategy Development, Business Management, Sales and Marketing, Business Finance

Dr. Claudia Manning

EDUCATION COMMITTEE

Experience: Director of Companies;

Experience in Education and Private Investment

Ian Russell

CHAIR: CHRISTEL HOUSE SA

Experience: Author, Speaker, Advisor.

Experience in Business, Finance, Corporate Governance, Marketing, Communication and Technology

Shereen La Fleur

CHIEF FINANCIAL & OPERATIONS OFFICER AND COMPANY SECRETARY: CHRISTEL HOUSE SA

Experience: Chartered Accountant (CA(SA))

Wayne Hull

MARKETING COMMITTEE AND 10X (WIDENING IMPACT) COMMITTEE CHAIRS

Experience: Global Digital, Technology, Marketing – Private Equity CTO/CMO/ Board USA

Prof. Linda Ronnie EDUCATION COMMITTEE

Experience: Professor at the School of Management Studies, Faculty of Commerce at UCT; Education and Transformative Education specialist

Dr. Antonio Fourie

AUDIT AND RISK COMMITTEE

Experience: CEO and Chairman of multinational listed groups in retail, financial services and diversified conglomerates.

Expertise in strategy, business leadership and governance

* Thank you to our exited board members, Dr. Sane Moleko and Lionel Sigauke for their support and contributions during 2022.

Theory of Change

BUILT ON A SOLID FOUNDATION, A CHRISTEL HOUSE EDUCATION PAVES THE WAY FOR GRADUATE SUCCESS

Our Top Performing Student

Dreams of being a pillar in his community

Abdu-Shakoor A., from Grassy Park, is the top-performing matriculant and Valedictorian for the class of 2022. He achieved five subject distinctions and will be studying Civil Engineering at Stellenbosch University. Abdu-Shakoor started his schooling career at a public school where he explains things were tough as he shared a classroom with over 60 other children. After winning the local GrowSmart educational competition, he joined Christel House SA in Grade 6 where he was more comfortable in a class with 30 students. Abdu-Shakoor is one of six siblings. He says, "I might come from a humble background where I face many challenges, but I have supportive parents and a school that makes sure I have the best resources and dedicated teachers. I am eternally grateful.” He adds, “I want to be a role model to people who need one… I want to care, I want to share and I want to make a difference. I want to be a hero and pillar to those who need one.”

Read more here: https://bit.ly/3XYXdIR

“Promise me you’ll always remember: You’re braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.”

– Christopher Robin to Winnie the Pooh

2022 Performance Indicators

2022 National statistics in South Africa: a matric pass rate of 80,1% and a Bachelor’s pass of 38,4% . In comparison, Christel House SA’s matric pass rate is 19,9% higher than the national average and our Bachelor pass is more than double the national average.

Grade 12 pass rate

Overall Grade 12 pass rate since inception

Grade 12

Bachelor’s pass rate

Grade 12

Academic subject distinctions

Alumni not in employment, education or training (NEET)

Student attendance rate

Grade RR–12 year-to-year retention rate

Our talented students shine in performing arts

Our talented drama group presented the Merchant of Venice with an African twist at this year’s Shakespeare Schools Festival, Africa’s largest annual Shakespeare youth drama festival. The festival was held at the Baxter Theatre in Cape Town. Over 557 schools, over 10 000 youth and 693 educators have participated in the event to date, and almost 26 000 people attended this year. Our parents volunteered to design and sew the various costumes for the play and were proud to

Student represents SA at international fencing competition

Aliziwe M., a Grade 11 student at Christel House

SA, proudly represented South Africa at the Commonwealth Fencing Championships held in London in August. She did the country proud by finishing 5th in her category. Christel House has a long-standing history of producing top-quality fencers for South Africa. Randall Daniels, our Engineering Graphics and Design (EGD) and Technology teacher, started the fencing team in 2006 and to date, we have produced 15 national fencers.

Robotics team wins bronze at national competition

In August, we proudly hosted the Provincial World Robot Olympiad (WRO) with 227 students and 89 teams participating from around the province. Three of our teams qualified for the national competition in Johannesburg in November, with our Junior School team winning bronze in their category. In addition, the WRO Western Cape committee also hosted a special robotics workshop at our school to introduce students from under-resourced areas to the world of robotics and coding.

See the following video covering the provincial event: https://bit.ly/3kKo9xI

Feeding families through food gardens

This year, 19 of our parents took part in our Family Food Garden project, in partnership with Greenpop, Urban Harvest and Naked Insure. The aim of the project is to address food inaccessibility and financial insecurity by equipping individuals with the skills to sustainably grow their own food at home. Parents were supplied with a family garden pod to grow their own vegetables at home and received structured support and training over a full 12-month period. The programme has been a resounding success with many of our parents boasting flourishing vegetable gardens through which they feed their families.

Cost per Student for 2023

Key aspects of our holistic model include daily transport to school and back, nutritious meals, professional healthcare, career planning and support and much more. In 2022, the cost to sponsor one student was R69 775. In 2023, it will cost R70 125 to sponsor one of our students. Contact us to help transform a life.

Tuition

R39 040

Healthcare & social services

R4 440

Career guidance & graduate support

R3 769

Outreach & service learning

R3 276

Sports & extramural activities

R753

Learning material, uniforms & support services

R3 213

Nutrition – 2 meals & a snack per day

R3 278

Transport –two trips per day & extra-mural activities

R6 884

Celebrating Resilience

Showcasing the magic of Christel House at our Special Assembly

On 16 November, we hosted our legendary yearend Special Assembly, with more than 200 donors, partners and friends attending the moving event. The theme of the event was ‘Rise Up’, symbolising our staff and students’ resilience shown during and post the pandemic. Students and alumni performed special musical and dance items and guests enjoyed a photo booth area where they received mini photo prints. It was the first in-person Special Assembly event we held since 2019 – and it was heartwarming to share the special morning with so many of our supporters.

Watch the video here: https://bit.ly/3j7Lmtg

Career Development

Speed Interview event prepares students for the world of work

We hosted our 4th annual Speed Interview event where human resource professionals conducted mock job interviews with our Grade 12 students. The event helps to prepare students for the world of work by creating a real-world interview scenario with an experienced professional.

Watch the video here: https://bit.ly/3Y2eII2

Job shadowing provides real-world experience for students

Introducing our students to the world of work is a key part of our intervention to help them find their passion and to dream big. Thank you to all our partner companies who generously opened their doors to our students this year, shared their personal career journeys and inspired our students to pursue their dream job. Krishana B., a Grade 11 student at Christel House SA visited Mane/ Deli Spices, one of the leading seasoning and additive blend suppliers to the Sub-Saharan food industry. She said, “My job shadowing experience was amazing. I visited the various departments and learnt about how spices, food and sweets are made. I am considering becoming a Food Technologist now.”

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.” – Dr Suess

Our Graduates

Kabelo Ntshuntshe (Class of 2018)

Graphic Design Intern

Kabelo, who grew up in Langa, completed a three-year diploma at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology in Visual Communication Design and is currently working as a Graphic Design Intern at a leading marketing agency in Cape Town. He says growing up in an area with a high crime rate and where drugs were commonplace was difficult. Kabelo and his six other family members lived in a two-bedroom house where his mother was the breadwinner.

He was a shy boy who did not start his school journey off excelling at academics. He says, “I’ve faced all the odds but I told myself that I want a better life for myself and my family. It was tough, but my goals and my support system kept me from being swallowed by the environment.”

Kabelo adds that Christel House SA offered him the opportunity to tap into his visual arts skill, which eventually turned out to be his first love and his career path. Kabelo is also extremely grateful to our Career Development department for assisting him as well as all the other staff members and supporters of Christel House SA.

Nikelwa Mqwabalala (Class of 2014)

Project Manager/Conflict Resolution and Mediation officer/ Events Organiser

Nikelwa started her school journey at Christel House in Grade 1. After Matric, she completed a BA in Political Science and Ethics. Since then, she has been actively involved in Human Rights organisations and works as a Project Manager, Conflict Resolution and Mediation officer and Events Organiser for large brands.

Nikelwa says that she faced many of the challenges that come with growing up in poverty. She describes how Christel House SA’s extracurricular activities such as fencing practice and debating competitions helped to keep her busy and steer her in the right direction. She says, “My experience at Christel House is one I would describe as transformative. I was protected by my school’s culture, from being socialised into the mindset and behavioural attributes of my community. All of which moulded me into a respectful, responsible, independent, and honest member of society whose task in life is to realise my full potential.”

Abigail Stewart (Class of 2009) Digital Marketer

Abigail Stewart grew up in Manenberg. She currently works as a Digital Marketer at one of the biggest internet agencies in the Netherlands but she says the road to get there was a bumpy one. She says, “I remember often fearing for my life as a rain of bullets showered down on our street.” Abigail is grateful that she had the privilege of attending Christel House where she felt loved, cared for and safe. She says, “During the day, I'd be at school, truly enjoying being there, and at night I'd be at home often feeling unsafe and scared.”

After matriculating, Abigail worked as the executive assistant to the Christel House SA CEO at the time and completed a certification in Hospitality, with the help of our Career Development department. Abigail relocated to Germany and then the Netherlands. Eventually, she graduated with a Creative Business degree and now works as a Digital Marketer. Abigail would especially like to thank the late Ms. Christel. She says, I am so grateful for her and my heart bleeds at the idea she is no more, but her legacy lives on in me.”

Youth Bridge Programme

In August 2022, our 10X department launched our first proof of concept Youth Bridge programme focused on helping unemployed youth find gainful employment. Our programme assists youth committed to entering permanent employment by providing in-depth character and career support for six months through a six-week, on-site training programme followed by four-and-a-half months of longitudinal mentoring.

Participants first engage in a work readiness programme consisting of character development lessons, computer training, financial literacy education and more. They are then connected to further education opportunities and eventually matched with potential employers.

In November, our first 23 participants from the Freedom Park community in Ottery completed their six-week readiness programme, with many already placed into employment and skills training opportunities. In 2023, our aim is to exponentially grow the number of Youth Bridge programmes we will be running, and request project partners to reach out to become part of this exciting development at Christel House SA.

To get involved, contact our Managing Partner: 10X, Ayanda Mvandaba, at amvandaba@sa.christelhouse.org

Derby Day sees Students

Unite on Heritage Day

Students who attend schools from across the wealth spectrum in Cape Town came together at Christel House SA on Heritage Day (24 September) for our annual Derby Day.

The event saw 350 students in Grades 6, 7, and 8 participate in fun, interactive bonding activities and cultural exchanges, including a gumboot dancing workshop, a potjiekos competition, art, and learning through playing indigenous games. Launched in 2019, the Derby Day forms part of the Simunye (we are one) project, a partnership between five schools in Cape Town that nurtures long-lasting relationships between South African youth from various ends of the wealth spectrum. The participating schools include Christel House SA, Die Duine Primary, Rondebosch Boys Prep, Mzamomtsha Primary and St Cyprians Girls School.

Read more here: https://bit.ly/4060RCp

“‘Why did you do all this for me?’ he asked. ‘I don’t deserve it. I’ve never done anything for you.’ 'You have been my friend,’ replied Charlotte. 'That in itself is a tremendous thing.’”

– Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White

Thank you to our Supporters

Celebrating 25 years with MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet

It was an honour to host MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet’s 25 year birthday celebration at Christel House SA. The highly innovative customer loyalty programme, initiated by Woolworths, has contributed nearly R1 billion to schools, charities and organisations nationwide.

Thank you for brightening up our campus on Mandela Day

On 18 July, more than 100 supporters volunteered their 67 minutes for Mandela Day by giving our classrooms, jungle gyms and other items on our campus a lick of paint.

Read more here:

https://bit.ly/3DhikOO

Ian Russell launches new leadership book benefitting Christel House SA

Business leadership expert, author and Board Chair of Christel House SA, Ian Russell, released his new book, The Upside of Being Myself and other leadership stories with all royalties of the book benefitting Christel House SA. To order the book via the Exclusive Books website, visit this link: https://bit.ly/3DdRNle

Thank you for providing a Bucket of Hope to each of our families

Our buckets are overflowing with your love and generosity. With your help, we were able to provide a nutritious food parcel to each of our 680 families over the December holidays. Thank you for giving hope to our students and their families and helping to fill tummies this festive season.

Alex St John runs Marathon des Sables for Christel House SA

Avid runner and one of our long-time friends, Alex St John, ran and completed the gruelling 251km Marathon des Sables in the Sahara Desert in April 2022 and raised an incredible £42 000 for our students.

Achieving our Virtual Fitness Challenge Goals

You did it! You helped us to beat our goals for our very first Virtual Fitness Challenge. With your help and generosity, we raised more than R320 000 and collectively covered more than 40 000kms. The campaign saw individuals and teams across all fitness levels take up the challenge during September, walking, running and cycling all in support of the students of Christel House SA. We also had nine runners participate in the Comrades Marathon, including our High School Principal, Dr Ronald Fortune.

We are excited to be running our Virtual Fitness Challenge again in September 2023 and we look forward to your support as we get fit, have fun, and raise funds for the students at Christel House SA.

To join our 2023 Virtual Fitness Challenge, visit: umbali.org/ challenge/christel-house-southafrica-virtual-fitness-challenge

A special thank you to CHEP (Presenting Sponsor), Smollan (Senior Phase Sponsor) and Blue Label Telecoms (Challenger Sponsor) for supporting our Virtual Fitness Challenge.

CHEP South Africa

Leading international supply chain solutions company, CHEP, supported the campaign early on as the Presenting Sponsor. “As part of our ongoing drive to support local communities, CHEP is proud to be able to positively impact the lives of students at Christel House SA. The CHEP team has thoroughly enjoyed being a part of this challenge. We are thankful to all participants for their generous contributions and at the same time, we are delighted to help such a wonderful school to transform the lives of the students they serve.” says Marietjie Brown, Sustainability and Government Affairs Lead for CHEP India, Middle East, Turkey and Africa (IMETA).

Smollan

Senior Phase Sponsor and global commerce business, Smollan, had integrated the Virtual Fitness Challenge into their Wellbeing Programme. Over 250 Smollan employees were registered, collectively raised R54 540 and tracked 15 674kms. “Our Smollan Being Well Programme offers support services across the well-being spectrum and as a part of our physical well-being initiatives, we were proud to be supporting Christel House in their Virtual Fitness Challenge.”

Michael Power, Chief Executive at

Smollan Africa.

Blue Label Telecoms

Blue Label Telecoms, a JSElisted company that sells innovative technology for mobile commerce to emerging markets in South Africa and abroad, supported the campaign as a Challenger Sponsor.

Financials

Statement of Financial Position Statement of Comprehensive Income

Statement of Cash Flows

Overhead and fundraising costs are funded by the Founder’s bequest to the organisation. The audited financial statements were compiled in accordance with the International Financial Reporting Standards for Small to Medium Sized Entities and in the manner required by the Companies Act of South Africa 2008. The registered auditors were Mazars, Cape Town. The complete set of audited financial statements is available on our website: www.sa.christelhouse.org

• 7 Across (DAE)

• A & A Shuttle Services

• Ackerman Family Educational Trust

• Actuarial Society of South Africa

• Adri Marais

• Afrihost

• Alex St John Marathon Des Sables Fundraiser

• Amabutho Investment Managers

• Amanda Page

• Amdec Property Development

• Andrew Krause

• Angie Strobel

• Ann Kreitzer Will Trust

• Anonymous Donors

• Anonymous Foundation

• Apartamentos Ambassador

• Apple

• Aria Network

• Asher Rosenberg

• Avril Koppel

• Barbara Blakemore

• Bella Vista

• Bernadette Thomlinson

• Bertenshaw Family

• BlackRock

• Blue Label Telecommunications

• Cameron Lodges

• Cape Grace Managed by Accor

• Capitec Foundation

• Carol Kriel

• Charles and Lucille King Family Foundation

• CHEP

• Christel House Europe

Sponsors and Partners

We would like to thank each individual and organisation who generously supported us in 2022. Together, we are building selfsufficient, contributing members of society and transforming lives.

• Christel House International

• Christel House SA staff payroll giving

• Christopher Holder Philanthropy

• City of Cape Town

• Claudia Manning

• Claytile

• Club Mykonos

• Columbus Cleaning Solutions

• Conrad N Hilton Foundation

• Cornelius J Kees Van Der Veldt

• Cow Hills Retail

• CTV

• Dell Technologies

• Diamond Resorts

• Dina-Marie Birkenstock

• Donald Harrill

• Donaldson Filtration Systems

• Dr Ronald Fortune

• Dugga

• Eamonn Ward

• Ebrahiem Hendricks

• Education for Life

• EG Woods Trust

• Elspeth Donovan

• Embassy of Switzerland in South Africa

• Europcar

• Excel

• Expectations Group

• F5

• FD Logistics Services

• First National Trustee Company

• Flash

• Flickswitch

• Focus

• FoodForward SA

Note: Represents donations greater than R5 000 in 2022.

• Four Seasons Vilamoura

• Francois Louw

• Generator Systems

• Girls With Wiings

• Gordon Dibb

• Gorgeous George Hotel

• Green Shoots

• Growthpoint Properties

• Guido Di Lucia

• Haggie Memorial Trust

• Harry Crossley Foundation

• HCI Foundation

• Heather Edge

• Heidi Alexander

• Helen Blakemore

• Hendrik Odendaal

• Ian Russell

• IDILIQ Hotels & Resorts

• Industroclean

• Intercoiffure

• Investec

• Jane Notten

• Julius Baer Foundation

• Just Giving

• Keith Pietschke

• KFC Add Hope

• Klaus and Monique

Lucke

• Ladles of Love

• Laila Naidoo

• Laser Logistics

• Leeroy May

• Libstar

• Light Enterprises

• Linda Ronnie

• Lotus River Day Hospital

• Make a Difference Leadership Foundation

• Mapula Trust

• Marc and Sianne Menashe

• Mariswe

• Martin Flaig

• Mazars

• Metrofile

• Michael and Melanie Sherwood

• Microsoft Azure

• Microsoft South Africa

• Moulin Rouge Hair Studio

• MySchool MyVillage

MyPlanet

• Naked Insurance

• National Occupational Safety Association

• Nexus Leisure

• Nick & Sandie Green

• Noakes Family Charitable Trust

• Nonceba QukuManyakanyaka

• Octavio Cabrera

• Olympus World

• Paper Video

• Paula Meaker

• Paypal

• Pearly Grey

• Peires Family

• Peninsula Schools

Feeding Association

• Peter & Pirjo Carr

• Peter Edmondson

• Philanthropy Initiative with Employees of Allan Gray

• Philippa J Notten

• R James Psychology

• R Leibrandt

• Rachel Du Toit Trust

• RAIN

• Randall Daniels

• RCI Europe

• RCI South Africa

• Reinsurance Group of America

• Richvale Resorts

• Roche

• Rothko

• Rupert Education Foundation

• Sanlam Small Grants

• Santiago Martin

• Scott Bader

• Shereen La Fleur

• Sherman Finance

• Shoprite

• Simon Walker

• Smollan

• Souter Charitable Trust

• Specsavers

• STAT Books

• Steltix

• Stephen Ross

• Stewart Van Graan

• Student Coin Collection Program

• Sygnia

• Sylvia Goller Trust

• Telviva

• The Peninsula All-Suite Hotel

• The Perse School

• The Shaughnessy

Family Foundation

• Tregenna Castle

• Tri Marine Acceptances

• Tsebo Solutions Group

• Uthando SA

• We Are Africa

• Wescape Charters & Tours

• Western Cape Education Department

• Wings of Support

• Wyndham Group Europe

100% of donations directly benefit the students who attend Christel House SA. Overhead and fundraising costs are funded by the Founder’s bequest to the organisation.

Help us to continue to transform lives by donating. Visit sa.christelhouse.org/donate/ or use our SnapScan code. All South African donations are tax deductible and businesses can qualify for BEE points when supporting us. International donors can also donate to Christel House SA through our registered charity organisations in the United States and the United Kingdom.

www.sa.christelhouse.org