Eldorado Park Women's Forum

The Eldorado Park Women's Forum was born from community need in 2000, when a group of individuals in Eldorado Park — a historically Coloured township in Soweto, surrounded by informal settlements and carrying high rates of GBV, poverty, and social disadvantage — decided that the absence of dedicated services for abused women and children was a problem they would address themselves. The organisation was formally registered in 2002 (NPO 019-372), received its Public Benefit Organisation status through SARS, and was granted 18A tax exemption in 2004 — making donations tax-deductible.

Gender-based violence was the explicit founding focus: "At conception our focus was fighting gender-based violence in all its forms." This primary commitment has expanded into a multi-project organisation addressing the full range of community need that intersects with and drives GBV — but the shelter remains the organisation's most critical service for women in immediate danger.

Projects and Programmes

Healing the Hurt — GBV Shelter The Healing the Hurt project is EPWF's flagship GBV intervention: a shelter providing women and children who are victims of abuse with a safe haven. In a community where domestic violence is pervasive and many women have no family support network they can safely access, a local shelter run by people embedded in the community is a lifeline. Contact EPWF directly to confirm current shelter capacity, intake procedures, and what documentation (if any) is required for admission.

Little Rascals Pre-School and Crèche — Early Childhood Development An ECD facility serving young children in Eldorado Park — providing safe, stimulating early learning environments for children whose home contexts are often chaotic, unsafe, or traumatic. For women exiting the shelter, access to quality childcare is often a critical enabler of recovery and stability.

Impact Development Academy — Youth Development A dedicated youth development project targeting the young people of Eldorado Park with life skills, educational support, and development programming. In a community with high school dropout rates and strong pull factors toward gang involvement and substance abuse, structured youth engagement is a direct preventive intervention.

Skills Development A vocational skills development project providing practical skills training for community members — with economic empowerment being one of the most important long-term protective factors against GBV and its recurrence.

Seeds of Promise — HIV/AIDS Home-Based Care Home-based care for terminally ill HIV/AIDS patients, cancer patients, and stroke patients. Services include direct care provision, adherence (treatment) counselling, and related support — addressing the reality that in communities like Eldorado Park, HIV/AIDS and GBV are deeply intersected crises that cannot be addressed in isolation.

Banking Details (for donations)

Eldorado Park Women's Forum | FNB Southgate | Cheque Account | Account number: 62022780622 | Branch code: 256055

EPWF: Eldorado Park, Soweto, Gauteng. Phone: +27 11 945 6433 / 5599. Cell: +27 72 950 7626. Email: info@epwf.org.za. Helpline: help@epwf.org.za. NPO 019-372. Shelter: Healing the Hurt project. Website: epwf.org.za.