The Western Cape Education Department says classes for next year’s grade 1 and 8 learners are at maximum capacity – while nearly 700 learners are still waiting to get placed at schools.

MEC David Maynier says while the department has been struggling to accommodate learners, they have continuously received late applications with 176 applications received in the last 3 weeks alone.

As of 11 December 2023, the Department has allocated places for 120 778, or 99.43%, of the learners for whom applications were received for Grade 1 and 8 for the 2024 school year.

Placement is in progress for 688, or 0.56%, Grade 1 and 8 learners. But Maynier says late applications continue to arrive.

”We understand that this is a stressful and anxious period for these parents. As a department, we are asking parents to work with us as we try to accommodate their children as soon as possible. We are exploring all available options to find a place for these learners for the start of the school year.”

Despite a R716.4 million blow to the Department’s budget, Maynier says they are working hard to expand the number of places available at schools in the Western Cape.

”We will still build 9 new schools to accommodate the learners applying for the 2024 school year, as well as 496 classrooms in areas of high demand for placement.”

The revised plan aims to deliver 608 additional classrooms across the province, which is more than double the average number built annually before 2022/2023, despite the infrastructure budget cut.

Maynier says despite all efforts to encourage parents to apply on time during the admissions applications window, between 13 March 2023 and 14 April 2023, they expect many thousands of learners to arrive in the first term next year needing placement.

”We do not know where they will seek placement, or what their grades, languages, ages, or subject choices will be. This makes planning our resource allocation for these extremely late applicants in advance very difficult, and their parents will have to wait some time before their child is placed.”

Maynier has again called for patience from parents submitting new applications, as their children may not be placed before the end of the first term.

”We will work to place every learner for whom an application is received going forward, but we want to be clear that Western Cape schools are full.”