About Mabarrat Um Al Hussein

Al Mabarrat is renowned national institution founded in 1958 by the late Queen Mother, H.M. Queen Zein Al-Sharaf as a home and haven for orphaned and vulnerable boys. For decades, Al Mabarrat has been providing shelter, care and learning opportunities for generations of young Jordanians, many of whom have graduated and become professionals in various careers. The Mabarrat is located in Marka, one of east Amman’s oldest, more densely populated urban areas. Today, Al Mabarrat (which in Arabic means charitable institution) is chaired by Her Royal Highness Princess Basma bint Talal, and is a model residential care home, as well as a social support hub for the surrounding local community.

Serving approximately 50 full-time boarding boys, and 70 off-site children aged between 6-18, Al Mabarrat is both a home and place for living, learning and recreation. A dedicated team of counsellors, teachers, caregivers, health workers, coaches and administrators provide support to children from around the country. Many of the children are designated wards of the state, having been orphaned, abandoned, or whose families are struggling and unable to continue to care for them at home. Whenever possible, the policy at Al Mabarrat is to reunite children with their families, through a range of support services and interventions.

All the Mabarrat boys who are full time boarders attend local schools in the Marka region, and both boarders and non-boarders (including a growing number of girls) receive after school tuition, sports and activities, health care and life skills training. The physical facilities and central location of Al Mabarrat make it ideal for hosting classes, activities, and sporting events. Dormitories, classrooms, catering facilities, a stage, computer labs, a football field, gym, and outdoor recreational areas provide the safe space for effectively organizing and supervising youth activities and events for members of the wider community.

Quality education is the foundation of change
Sports talents
Our Care Model

Mabarrat Um Al-Hussein adopts a comprehensive care model, focusing on child protection, learning, healthy living, physical and mental health, developing talents, integrating children into society, boosting their self-confidence, and helping them shape their academic and career paths.

We believe in giving every child the opportunity to grow, learn, and thrive. We are committed to ensuring their rights, as outlined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, including the right to education, health, and play, and ultimately, to a fulfilled and dignified life.

Our goal is to become a unique institutional model for children in care, both locally and in the Arab region, by continuously developing, expanding, and improving the services we offer, and by opening our doors to more children and young people facing difficult circumstances. We are always working hard to ensure that our organisational model conforms to international child protection standards and guidelines, reflected in institutional policies, practices and procedures, as well as the professional conduct of its team.

From Our Chairperson
H.R.H Princess Basma bint Talal

“Today, Al Mabarrat is home to many boys, and our activities and facilities involve additional numbers of boys and girls from the surrounding community. All these children have faced challenging and difficult circumstances, but they inspire us every day with their various personalities, abilities, and vulnerabilities.

Although the demand and need for places in Al Mabarrat is increasing, we simply cannot take on all the requests for transfers from public residential care facilities at a faster pace. So, for those boys who do get a place in the Mabarrat, our goal is to provide the most nurturing environment possible. Our priority must be the extra-curricular support of students, and I’m glad to say that the in-house counselling, activities and medical care provided continues to be improved.

Our outreach programme includes those boys and girls from the local community who benefit from life skills training, IT facilities and youth groups. This relationship means more cohesion between Al Mabarrat as a care home, and as a dynamic social support hub for the surrounding community.

Summer camp, model UN participation, weekly hiking and regular sports activities are central to our efforts to providing an all-round positive experience, and we recently established a Mabarrat youth committee, affiliated with nation-wide youth leadership networks. Through these committees, young people have the chance to organize and mobilize, to make their voices heard, to vote and elect their own representatives and work collectively on issues of common interest.

Recently, I heard that one of our students had voiced his fear of graduating from Al Mabarrat and his anxiety about what the future might hold. This stuck with me, and I share this with you now so that you can help us figure out a way for no young people to lose sleep over this very real fear. It is vital that we work hard to develop the skills and knowledge necessary to navigate the challenges the children will face, to earn a living, to enjoy productive lives, and to be active and engaged citizens. So, we are trying to really develop a holistic learning approach for all children and teenagers during the time they are with us and continuing after they leave. After school learning support, career counselling, interview skills, IT skills, training opportunities and internships… all of these are important. Crucially though, we know now that it is the boys and girls themselves that can support each other in the future, because the Mabarrat family is for life.

We are talking to alumni about the invaluable role that they can play, as every year, students embark on their next steps into the wider world. We very much hope that we can make the transition as easy as possible, and we hope that even after they leave, these young people can also look to us as they make life choices or just need to talk.

One of our more strategic ambitions, in addition to giving our students the very best possible start in life, is to continue to develop an institutional model for children in care, not just for Jordan, but for the Arab world. Capacity building for staff, internal policies and procedures, as well internal renovations are ongoing. We now have a dynamic program for volunteers from teaching and other backgrounds, which is injecting new energy into all our program design and development. Key partnerships with the ministry of social development, and other national players, including the private sector, and academic and vocational training institutions are crucial for the continued growth and sustainability of Al Mabarrat and its graduates. We are extremely grateful for the generous support of the individuals, corporations, national and international organisations that make Al Mabarrat the success it is today. We thank you for your continued friendship.’

H.R.H Princess Basma bint Talal, Chairperson

Our Programmes

27 September

Full-time, In-House Boarders Programme

These services collectively aim to provide comprehensive care for young boys and adolescent boys....

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27 September

Al Mabarrat’s External Outreach Programme

This programme is designed to support boys and girls who live with their families but require additional.....

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27 September

Graduates Programme at Mabarrat Um Al-Hussien

The Graduates Programme at Mabarrat Um Al-Hussien is designed to provide ongoing support to young....

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