Brief information:

Social Circus is a major international program developed by the world-renowned Canadian Cirque de Soleil in more than 50 countries. Save the Children implemented this program in Mongolia since 1999 to support the individual and social development of children and youth living in difficult circumstances. By participating in this training, children and young people not only learn circus techniques, but also acquire positive social skills. It also improves children's ability to participate in social life by experiencing the benefits of group work, building resilience, listening to others, respecting themselves, and building self-confidence. Three participants in the “Social Circus” project from Mongolia have become professional circus performers and are working successfully around the world. In addition, thousands of children have developed the ability to cope with the challenges they face and make a significant contribution to their physical and social well-being.

Project goal:

To improve the family care and protection by contributing to the personal and social development of children through circus arts.

Project objectives:

• Empower children by promoting their physical and psychological development
  
• Boost children’s self-esteem and trust in their peers
  
• Motivate children to form personal aspirations
  
• Support children to learn from their mentors, their role models for teamwork and self-development
  
• Facilitate children to gain the life skills to make informed decisions, set goals and manage conflict.
  

Project implementation unit:

• Save the Children’s Care Centres and Shelters
  
• Save the Children’s Community-based Child Development and Protection Centres;
  
• Save the Children’s Child Centre (later the Child Protection Resource Centre);
  
• Detention center No.411 under Court Decision Implementation Authority;
  
• Government-funded care centres and shelters;
  
• The NGO Development and Protection of Children and Youth that works to protect the rights of working children;
  
• National Centre against Violence;
  
• Non-formal Lifelong Education Centres under the National Centre for Lifelong Education; Secondary School No.29 for visually impaired children
  

• More than 9,000 children and youth have participated in this project since 2000. The children’s physical growth, flexibility, and coordination have improved as a result of the training. Self-confidence and trust in others had also increased. They learned many individual and social skills such as goal setting, patience and creative thinking, and independent decision making. Children’s participation in the community increases as they experience the benefits of working in teams, gain patience, listen to and respect others, build self-confidence, and place their trust in peers and adults.
  
• Cirque De Soleil and Save the Children conducted four full training courses in Mongolia from 2001 to 2013, trained 70 trainers and social workers from 30 organisations in social circus methodology and techniques.
  
• We developed, published and distributed the Social Circus Curriculum, which includes a 40-hour programme designed for circus trainers and social workers, Socialization Exercises and Equipment, a manual for organizing a Social Circus training programme.
  

• In addition to circus skills training, child protection services are also provided. These include identification of children at risk of having their rights violated and requiring social worker intervention, family assessments and individual counselling, referrals to basic social services through local MDTs, and capacity building of partner organisations to protect vulnerable children.
  
• Supplementary activities included summer training camps to support the socialization of disadvantaged children, and promoting children’s participation in the social circus methodology. In 2015, the National Centre for Lifelong Education became the project's lead partner, providing both development and protection services to children supported by the Centre.