Dorna Centre Home for Autism

Dorna Centre Home for Autism is an organisation dedicated to supporting children and young people with Autism, their families and the Autism community at large. The Centre aims to provide education and therapeutic services which promote greater independence in home and community settings for those living with Autism.

After being rewarded with Oxfam’s VOICE grant, Brass for Africa began delivering Music and Life-Skills sessions to the centre twice a week in 2020. Through these sessions, we have seen incredible transformations among the participants, for example:

Concentration has greatly increased; at the beginning of the partnership the sessions could only take place for 10 minutes, but now the participants can hold their concentration for up to an hour.
Communication & teamwork have vastly improved; many of those living at the Centre can find it difficult to communicate and would keep to themselves. But through the Music and Life-Skills sessions, teachers have reported that the participants now interact more with them and work well with each other.

Confidence has grown; when the sessions began at the centre, it was noted that many of the participants were shy and lacked confidence - now, they run up to the bus when the BfA teachers arrive and help them with the instruments, they have performed at distinct functions including in front of the Uganda Minister of Disability, and happily stand up in front of each other and partake during a class.