Millions spent improving school safety
EDUCATION authorities in the Western Cape have spent R34.4 million on safety requirements at schools, including special fencing that deflects bullets.
MEC for Education Debbie Schäfer and her top officials presented the department’s annual report for the 2016/17 financial year.
Allen Meyer, the director of the north region, said safety remained a challenge at schools.
“There are many challenges that relate to the safety at our schools. We have been working very well with the police and Metro police to keep our schools safe. We have installed special fencing that deflects bullets. Automated gates have also been installed,” Meyer said.
Brian Schreuder, the departmental head, highlighted the increasing safety and violence challenges. He said R21.6m had been spent in the 2015/16 financial year.
“In this financial year (2016/17) the department spent R34.4m on safety at schools.
“This is not our mandate, but it directly affects us and we have to make provision for it,” Schreuder said.
Schäfer said that given the social challenges, the department had had to change the way it thought.
“We are having to change the way that we operate and we have had to push boundaries that we never thought could be pushed,” she said.
“School safety remains an ongoing concern, and is largely the result of issues in communities such as gangsterism and poverty.
“Our after-schools programme is aimed at providing after-school opportunities for our young people, to give them constructive alternatives to getting involved in dangerous and antisocial activities,” she said.
Attacks on teachers and other forms of violence in schools had reached a crisis points, and in August the National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of South Africa said the government and other stakeholders needed to work together in finding a solution.
According to teachers’ union Sadtu statistics, from January to March this year there were 52 attacks on teachers: nine by community members, 39 by pupils and four by parents.