Community Engagement

Community Ownership in Creche Process

In a village, where a creche center is running, it can only be sustained if the people in the community feel it is their own. This doesn’t happen just by opening a creche. It happens when the entire village is involved in understanding the need, participating in the regular interactions, and being part of the decision-making. Our experience says when people are involved from the beginning and stay connected to the daily operations of their creche centers, they themselves feel responsible for the smooth functioning of the creches.

Community Mobilization in Creche Process

Creche Management Committee (CMC) meetings: The Creche Management Committee plays a pivotal role in strengthening the creche functions. We need to regularize this meeting monthly. As this committee includes the key stakeholders along with the parents, we can discuss the challenge of low attendance with them along with showing good practices that are followed in creches. Through this they can feel the importance of creches and can follow similar practices at home as well.
Sharing of creche operations in Gram Sabha (Village Assembly): Gram Sabha is an official village meeting where all adults of the village; women and men, are invited. It is usually held in the panchayat building or common village space and is often led by the sarpanch or panchayat members. It is a platform where decisions can be discussed and approved. People feel they are officially included in the village’s progress. Government schemes and local issues have usually been discussed here so it’s a natural place to talk about the creche operations. We can talk to the sarpanch and the panchayat members to initiate creche related challenges as well. It can include current challenges of the center like low attendance, less measurement of kids, low enrollment, and its impact on children.

Prabhaat Feri: Prabhaat Feri is an early morning community walk, where people (especially youth and children) go around the village with slogans, songs, or simple messages about a topic, such as health, cleanliness, or education. We can include topics related to creche, like sending kids to center, ensure growth measurement, etc. It reaches everyone directly, even those who don’t attend community meetings. It also grabs attention. It shows that something important is happening and invites curiosity and participation among people. We can choose a few simple messages or songs like “Kaam par maa jaaye befikar —jab crèche ho apne ghar.” Walk through the village in the morning with drums and posters. At the end of the walk, we can invite people to a community meeting to discuss more.
Nukkad Natak: A Nukkad Natak is a short play or skit performed in a public place, like near a school or market. It’s informal, simple, and uses local language to tell a story with a social message. It is a very useful way because people generally like stories and and are most aware when they see real-life situations acted out. Creche supervisor along with some youth, can create a short skit (5–10 minutes) that shows a working mother struggling to find someone to watch her child, the dangers of leaving young children alone, and how a creche helps both the child and the family. Or how a kid becomes healthy after coming to the creche daily.

Larger Community Meeting: This is a simple gathering, open to all—men, women, youth and elders. It is usually held at any common space. It’s less formal than a Gram Sabha but very effective for open conversation and planning. We can plan it in a month. We can use this way by explaining the need for a crèche in simple language and also the impact of children who come daily at a crèche center. Can encourage mothers to share their stories of change in their life after opening the crèche.
Celebrating Local Festivals: Every village has its own festivals—religious, seasonal, or cultural. These are times when people come together to celebrate, sing, dance and share joy. These festivals can be a useful way to connect with everyone in the community. We can celebrate such festivals at our creches as well in a small way that can give a chance to spread messages and make the people feel that these centers are part of their village. It can build a cultural connection between community life and the crèche. Caregivers can lead this with the supervisors.

Celebration of measurement day: Ensuring all the children’s growth measurement is a current challenge that we are currently facing in our creches. To bring awareness and ensure 100% growth measurement we can initiate that day as a celebration at a center. Prior to that day supervisors and caregivers can communicate this to all the parents to come with their kids or send their kids for the measurement. It will not be a larger gathering but in a similar way of creating awareness and motivated parents to send their kids. ( Aganwadis usually does in a similar manner called Wajan Tyohar)