A place of hope and new opportunities for the female street children of Cape Town.

A blue gate marks the Albertus Street entrance to Ons Plek (Afrikaans for “Our Place”), a shelter for homeless women.

The shelter is located on the same block as the building in which the District Six Museum and Stepping Stones Children's Centre are housed. Ons Plek is an all girls' shelter that was established in 1988. Staff at the shelter work 24 hours a day to help the girls keep off the streets.

Ons Plek provides the girls with educational support, motivation, and self-confidence. Each year approximately 15 000 girls between 6 and 18 years leave home to fend for themselves on the streets of Cape Town. On account of the deterioration of socio-economic conditions in South Africa, this number increases annually. Ons Plek's mission is to take the girls in before the streets get them.

When Ons Plek was established, the shelter housed 60 girls from different parts of South Africa and other countries. Some of the girls are refugees and victims of war; others are children who suffer from mental and physical abuse.

Ons Plek is the only girls shelter that provides 24-hour assistance to homeless young women.