Africa-Press – South-Africa. Twenty-six school children have not yet been placed in schools in the Western Cape, this as the second term of the academic year kicked off this week. (5 April)
The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) said they are aware of this and have been trying to contact the parents of those learners to make arrangements for placements.
Currently, there are five Grade 1 pupils and 21 Grade 8 pupils not yet placed.
“A number of learners were successfully placed over the holiday period. Unfortunately, we are finding it a challenge to get hold of these remaining parents using the contact numbers provided to us. Still, we are persisting,” said Bronagh Hammond, spokesperson for the department.
The WCED has been very vocal about the fact that its budget does not support the number of learners in the system with regard to the infrastructure and teaching posts required.
Back to school: More than 1 000 Gauteng pupils in limbo, having still not yet been placed
According to the WCED, the total budget for the 2022/23 financial year is R28.03 billion, R2.2bn more than what they received last year.
“We are very pleased with it; we must not expect this to solve all our issues,” said MEC Debbie Schäfer previously in her 2022/2023 budget speech.
She said with 1.1 million pupils, nearly 42 000 staff members, and many infrastructure needs, a lot more money is needed to keep things running.
“And we have been cutting into the bone for some time now,” said Schäfer at the time.
The department said that some of the additional funding would enable the department to add an extra 329 public service posts to reduce the administrative burdens that schools face.
“We are very aware of the overcrowding we are faced with within many of our classrooms. The additional budget will also allow us to make some progress in reducing the teacher: learner ratio by appointing additional teachers,” said Schäfer.
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The department said additional support for schools would be implementing the third phase of the Basic Education Employment Initiative, which will be implemented from 1 April to 30 September this year.
According to Schäfer, R533.91 million will be spent in the 2022/23 financial year to fund assistants at schools who support school staff.
“These assistants have been well received in our schools, so the stop-start nature of the project as the result of delays in the confirmation of funding from the National Treasury is frustrating, to say the least,” added the department.
ANC education spokesperson in the province Khalid Sayed was disappointed that not all pupils were placed.
“This is a persistent challenge that occurs every year,” he said.
Vanessa Le Roux, who represents Parents For Equal Education, said she receives complaints from parents that their children need places in special needs schools.
“There is a long waiting list, children in mainstream schools are now forced to stay in mainstream schools when teachers are not trained to deal with these learners, or they wait till they reach the age of 15 years and then wash their hands off these children, leaving them to the streets.”
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