McGregor is a small town with about 3000 residents and surrounded by a large farming community. Other than farming and tourism, McGregor offers little other employment. School leavers and women can get seasonal work (December – February) in the factory in Ashton (about 35km away) and on the farms. The men are mostly involved in the building trade including bricklayers, painters and a few carpenters. Most qualified plumbers, electricians and some builders are white. Other than some builders, very few of the coloured and black families run their own businesses.

All guest houses, restaurants and weekend accommodation on farms are owned by white people. Jobs are scarce and skills of school leavers are low. Many students do not complete the final school examination and leave school early, further complicating the situation. Unemployment, alcoholism, teenage pregnancies and poverty are rife.

Through training and home industries the Breede Centre hopes to establish many little centers of self-employment with a central marketing arm.

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Pieter Holloway is a native South African who has been living and teaching Mathematics and crafts in the McGregor Waldorf School for the past twelve years. He witnessed firsthand the devastating effect the lack of opportunity in education and employment has upon the lives of young people. He started a woodwork business and training centre on a very small scale but envisioned a local training centre with its own campus and facilities so that the young people would not have to leave the village for skills training. This would counter the demoralizing drift to the cities that alienates them from their family and community support structures and will enable the setting up of home industries. And so the idea of The Breede Centre was born…

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Dorothy Esau is one of the staff members at The Breede Centre with a strong connection to the local community. Since June 2014 she is working full-time at the centre.

Dorothy is currently working as Administration clerk and receptionist. She is being trained by the Coordinator to take over most of the financial responsibilities for the centre. She is also coordinating the stock, production and finances of the new Screen printing enterprise. She is much more than a clerk. If you ring, if you pop in, she is the first one you will hear and see.

She is the face of The Breede Centre.

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CORE COURSES :

Courses can be formal or informal. A formal course will be accredited and certificated after successful completion. An informal course will be a group of interested people coming together to learn from each other and share skills.

Long Courses
These are in-depth courses that run over one to three years and are accredited. Before a long course starts a SOCIAL ENTERPRISE is set up to support the practical and entrepreneurial training. Eg Woodwork; Building; Needlework; Cooking; Hairdressing.

Supplementary Courses
These are aimed at general education and development and form an integral part of all long courses. They are modular courses that can also be given on their own. Eg: Art; Drama; Space and environment management; Life Skills; Social Responsibility; Entrepreneurship.

Short Courses
These run over weekends or a few weeks – some accredited and some not. Eg Basic Computers, Accountancy, Administration, Woodwork, Needlework, Cooking, Gardening.

Breede Centre Support Courses:

These are courses that support the core courses or are of a more general educational and developmental nature. Eg Maths, Homework support, Conversational English, Handy/practical mechanics, Afternoon and holiday activities, Social Support, Vocational education & training.

Breede Centre Complementary Activities
These are activities that can use the Breede Centre premises and organizations in the wider community network. Eg Micro Economic Forum, AA, Small Farmers Group.

After the courses…what?
Home Industries We intend to assist in setting up home industries so that trained students can start small “industries” at home. This will involve providing them with machines and after training support.

More information on the Breede Centre Website

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