'Pay and conditions in England are much better, and I also get access to the NHS, whereas you do not get free healthcare in South Africa.'
Her 15-year-old son, Jodi-Lee, is living with his grandmother in South Africa. 'We talked it over and agreed on it. It took some courage for me to come over, but I have come with the attitude that this will benefit all of us. I'll be picking up very good work experience, and obviously I'll be financially more stable.'
Psycad and Teddies made Porchea's move as straightforward as possible. 'When I arrived I had a job, I had a flat, and it made it much easier. I live in a three-bedroom flat with two other girls, and one has moved in recently from South Africa so I've taken her under my wing. There is a lot of red tape to get through, but it's worth the trouble.
'I worked in a low-income area in Cape Town. Here, a high percentage of the parents are professional people and very involved in their children's day.'
And while very long working hours prevented South African parents from being so involved, parents here 'want to know on a daily basis' what their children have been doing, she says.
'Another big difference is the age of the children. Children go to school earlier here, so the group I'm working with is younger.
'In South Africa, I worked with a group of about 20 children. Here, the ratios make for a different, more intimate way of working. You can spend more time on one particular activity and you have more time to complete an activity.
'Everything's easier because of the ratio. The children are intellectually more advanced, their literacy is more advanced, they have much bigger vocabularies and they have had more exposure to computers. You can't nurture children in the same way on a 1:20 ratio. Also, there are more resources here - for example, it's much easier to cook biscuits with the children!'
Porchea has introduced the Teddies children to her own cultural background, helping to develop their understanding of the world. 'I've made them food, told them I speak Afrikaans and English and explained that there are many different languages and people. I've told them about the flag, the colours, the differences in the seasons and how we celebrate Christmas - which is outside, and most of the food is cold. Our Christmas pudding is fruit salad.'
And she has built up close relationships with the children. 'I went home for Christmas, and it made my day coming back. The children were very happy to see me, which helped me getting over my homesickness.'
