STAY SAFE, a registered NPO, is a self-protection and empowerment training initiative for girls and women. Endorsed by singer Annie Lennox, STAY SAFE is a credible organisation, drawing big corporate sponsors such as local retailer Shoprite.
To date, this life skills programme has empowered more than 200 000 primary and secondary school learners with the practical skills of general safety and self-defence. In 2014 Shoprite agreed to the sponsorship of the STAY SAFE Women’s Roadshow for a contractual period of 18 months. This equipped more than 1800 women from previously disadvantaged areas with the practical skills of self-defence.
STAY SAFE is captained by Sanette Smit, author of The South African Woman’s Guide to Self Defence, a respected karate and self-defence practitioner with 40 years of experience. Sanette has dedicated her life to the empowerment of girls and women. She has conducted thousands of interviews with rape survivors over the years and has concluded that women need to be educated in terms of rape prevention and self-defence instruction. South African women want to fight back, they just need to be taught how to.
The STAY SAFE team of eight highly trained and experienced female self-defence practitioners is dedicated to the empowerment of women. On 13 January 2016 STAY SAFE was registered as a Non-Profit Organization (NPO), with an NPO No.: 164 -259, as well as a PBO No.: 930053306.
Workshops
Schools Safety
The Schools Safety Project is a life skills programme that is age-adapted to accommodate learners from Grade 1 to Grade 12. Although project is currently based in the Western Cape and the team travels to the schools requiring the training, the programme is available to all South African Schools.
Stay Safe Women’s Roadshow
Special Needs Programmes
Children and adults with special needs are some of the most vulnerable people when it comes to violence and abuse. In fact, special needs children fall into the top five categories of children who experience the highest rates of abuse. These self-defence empowerment programmes are aimed at them.
Train the Trainer
The Train the Trainer project is aimed at training young and enthusiastic trainers and facilitators to run self-defence training courses and workshops in their own communities. A comprehensive Train the Trainer Manual has already been compiled to cover all aspects of instruction from voice command, presentation and interpersonal skills.
