Family First Ghana

Family First is a charitable organisation that is passionate about supporting families who have children with complex medical needs and disabilities in Kumasi, Ghana. Family First believes that by working directly with families who have children with special needs and by partnering with hospitals, schools, other NGOs and local community leaders that families can go from surviving to thriving.

We dream of an inclusive and accessible Kumasi for all individuals. A place where everyone is accepted and has the opportunity to access education, medical care and can be a valued member of their community.

What we are currently fundraising for: 

1) Family sponsorship: we offer family sponsorship to ensure the family’s immediate needs are being met. We work with the family to develop individualised care plans which may include: access to medical care, therapeutic interventions, education, safe and accessible housing, and nutritional support to create a safe and loving environment in which the child’s needs can be met. 


2) Adaptable and specialist equipment: we work with local carpenters to make specialist equipment for children with disabilities, including wooden standing frames and chairs and bamboo walking frames and parallel bars. 


3) Inclusive and accessible schools: we are currently working with several local schools who are in the process of becoming inclusive schools. We offer staff training in mainstream and special needs schools. These schools need access to resources that are adapted for children with special needs, such as fine and gross motor activities, physiotherapy and sensory aids. We help build ramps to make schools accessible for children in wheelchairs, and sensory rooms for children who need a quiet, calm space to regulate and learn through their senses. 

We are supporting a small school to build three new accessible classrooms so that their school can become inclusive. The classrooms are well situated and accessible to children who have physical disabilities and would need wheelchair access.  We support several families in this local area who would benefit from this school and know it would have so many positive implications for the community.


4) Nutritional Supplements: many of the children that we work with who have cerebral palsy struggle to maintain a healthy weight and have energy for their physiotherapy. We supply Project Peanut Butter which are energy dense nutritional supplements, which the kids just love and benefit massively from. Some of the children that we work with have medical needs, such as neurofibromatosis type 1, and benefit from vitamin D supplements, which we currently have to supply from the UK. 

To follow the work that we are doing, please keep in touch via our social media sites: 
www.facebook.com/familyfirstghana
www.instagram.com/ghanafamilyfirst