As parents proudly posted pictures on social media of their children going to school for the first time, thousands of others braved the elements from as early as 05:00 this morning to join the long queues outside education department district offices to seek placement for their children.
At the Metro South Education District in Lentegeur, angry parents scolded an education department official when he announced that the queue would be closed at around 08:45.
The official told parents that the office could only accommodate 300 people for the day. The more than a hundred parents who did not make the cut-off were referred to the department’s satellite office a few kilometres away.
Parents complained that they had been standing in the queue for hours and for many it was not their first time waiting.
Fruitless hours in the sun
Khumisa Tunzi from Khayelitsha was among the number that were referred. She said the process was unfair.
Tunzi was trying to find a place for her Grade 5 daughter closer to home because the school she attends in Zonnebloem is too far away. The schools near her home are too full, she said.
“She leaves the house at five o’clock and then only gets home at six or seven o’clock at night,” Tunzi said.
She said she has been trying to get her daughter transferred since December last year but has had no feedback from the department.
ALSO READ: Historic 88% pass rate marks best-ever matric results for South Africa
Chante Joubert of Rocklands was also among the number who were referred.
She said she was trying to find a place for her brother and cousin in Grades 7 and 8.
“We didn’t know about the online application,” Joubert said, explaining that she is the main caregiver for the boys because their parents are “roaming around”.
Joubert said she first applied at the department in August for the boys.
“I’ve had no response since then,” she said.
Thousands still need space at schools
The group was among 7 200 in the Western Cape, according to the Good Party, who still needed placement when schools reopened this morning for the 2026 academic year.
“That is 7 200 young people starting the year in limbo, anxious about their future, not because of a lack of effort or ability, but because the system has failed to provide enough space for them to continue their education,” Brett Herron, GOOD’s member of the Western Cape Parliament, said.
“The Western Cape government is quick to brand itself as the ‘best-run’ province in the country. But a government that leaves thousands of children without access to schooling at the start of the academic year cannot credibly claim success.
“This now raises the question: When will these children be placed in classrooms? How long will they have to delay their future for?”
Late applications
When TygerBurger posed these questions to the Western Cape Education Department, spokesperson Millicent Merton said that since November, the department had received more than 10 000 late applications.
“As of 7 January this year, placement was still underway for 7 540 learners,” Merton said, adding that updated figures would be made available soon.
She said that since 1 November last year, the WCED received 10 666 late Grade R, 1 and 8 applications. Most of these were received in November and December but by 7 January, the department had received 758 new “extremely late applications”.
ALSO READ: Kuils River matriculant shows excellence has no barriers
“Late applications create considerable challenges for the WCED. They disrupt planning for learner placement, resource allocation and staffing, and place additional strain on the department to place learners immediately during a period when schools are closed for the holidays. This means that discussions around placement can only resume once schools reopen, delaying the process further,” she explained.
Capacity building
She added that the department is also working on increasing capacity.
“Additional capacity is also been sought in new classrooms that have been built,” she said.
Merton added that the province is facing “increasing demand for places in our schools”.
“Our Rapid School Build Programme continues to expand access to education in our province at an incredible rate in order to meet this demand. Nine new schools that were opened in a phased approach have been fully completed for the 2026 school year. These schools are located in Lwandle, Wallacedene, Blue Downs, Philippi, Tafelsig, Darling, Fisherhaven, and Plettenberg Bay.
ALSO READ: New school in Tafelsig, Mitchells Plain brings hope
“We are opening the first phases of another two new schools: Ilitha Park High School in Khayelitsha and Brantwood High School in Kuils River. Additional brick and mortar classrooms have also been added to 12 existing schools, and in total, we have added 175 new classrooms to the system,” she said.
You must be logged in to post a comment.