This programme educates pregnant mothers about what to do and not to do during pregnancy, especially on the issue of alcohol.

Help the Rural Child’s programme is not just about day to day support for children; we believe that the problems that lead to such difficult and challenging lives for children start with their parents.

Violence and abuse - often aided by the excessive consumption of alcohol - lead to traumatised children who grow up unable to break the cycle and often turn to drink, violence and abuse themselves as they grow older.

A devastating result of excessive drinking is the high proportion of rural children who are born with Foetal Alcohol Syndrome. These children are born brain damaged as a result of their mothers’ high alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Without specialist help, these children have little or no chance of making a better life for themselves and their prospects are therefore very bleak.

Help the Rural Child sets out to educate young women about the dangers of alcohol during pregnancy and classes for expectant mothers are held at the centres to make them aware of the damage their child might suffer. Theatre pieces and workshops are some of the more effective ways to get the message across.