As adverse weather conditions continue throughout the Western Cape, the Department of Education says all schools will be closed on Tuesday, 12 May 2026.
The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) says this decision was made in the interest of both learners and teachers, whose safety is the department’s main priority.
The MEC for Education, David Maynier, says his department consulted key role players.
“In the interests of learner and teacher safety, and after extensive consultation with the Provincial Disaster Management Centre and the South African Weather Service (SAWS), a decision has been taken to close all schools in the Western Cape on Tuesday, 12 May 2026. This includes all public ordinary and special schools in the province. Disaster Management and SAWS have made the recommendation based on updated weather projections and current conditions,” he stressed.
Maynier says while the department tries to avoid school closures at all times, the extreme weather conditions cannot be ignored.
“Our default position is always to keep schools open and only close schools in exceptional circumstances, but we are mindful of the severity of the warnings in place. We will continuously monitor and evaluate the situation to ensure that schools can reopen as soon as possible, which is currently expected to be on Wednesday, 13 May 2026,” he reiterated.
The department confirmed that over 200 schools applied for closure in addition to the closure list issued for the Cape Winelands, Eden, and Central Karoo districts. Several schools have also suffered damage due to the storm, which is currently being assessed.
