Emotional day as unplaced learners, flooding and overcrowding mar first day of school

Johannesburg, Gauteng

Outside the Gauteng Department of Education district offices in Sandton, angry parents whose children have yet to be placed in schools surrounded Basic Education spokesperson Steve Mabona, demanding answers.

“I started applying on 27 July, and for five months the department has been telling me they will sort out the placements. It’s been months I have been trying to sort it out, but still nothing. My daughter was supposed to start Grade 8 today, but she is sitting at home. How long will she sit at home until they sort this out?” Parent Lesiba Gwangwa said.

Speaking to Daily Maverick outside the offices, Mabona said that nearly 3,000 students remained unplaced for myriad reasons, including:

• High school fees: Parents were seeking reasonably priced schools, sometimes rejecting placements due to unaffordable fees.
• Late applications: Some parents applied late, leading to distant placements that the parents wished to change.
• Grade 8 was the biggest challenge: This was largely due to students transferring from independent/private schools and those relocating from other provinces, creating an influx not matched by existing school capacity.

Parents report receiving acceptance notifications on the online system, but when they arrive at the school, administrators deny any record of their child’s placement. Mabona claimed that the system was synchronised between Gauteng Department of Education and schools, making it impossible for this error to occur.

However, parent Kate McKinnin, who spoke to Daily Maverick outside the district offices, said that she had received an acceptance notification to Linksfield Primary School. When she went to the school on Monday, 12 January, the school said her son, Joshua, had not been placed there.

Joshua, who was meant to start Grade 1, said he was feeling terrible that he could not start school with the rest of the country.

While Mabona could not provide Daily Maverick with concrete timelines, saying that the school must first check if they had capacity, he claimed that the placements issue should be sorted by the end of the week.

“Exact time frames are difficult due to the school-by-school negotiation process and the 10-day headcount period for schools to assess final capacity,” he said.

He added that negotiations were ongoing, with the department asking schools to increase their capacity by offering 10-20 additional spots. To try and mitigate overcrowding at schools that decided to take more learners, the department would deploy mobile classrooms to highly pressured schools to expand capacity. However, additional resources, such as teachers and learning materials, were still required

Vhembe District, Limpopo

Severe flooding in the Vhembe District has delayed the reopening of schools there, with learners unable to attend classes due to flooded rivers, damaged roads and unsafe access routes.

According to Luphai Secondary School principal Florah Nefale, a school located in Maranzhe village just outside Thohoyandou, the situation had forced the school to prioritise learner safety over attendance.

“We were ready to start with the academic year, but there will be no attendance for these first three days. Three days is a lot in terms of schooling, and we will have to come up with a recovery plan,” she said.

“The area where the school is located is surrounded by rivers. Learners have to cross these rivers, and unfortunately some of the bridges are flooded, making it impossible for them to cross,” Nefale said.

She added that the decision to keep learners at home was taken in line with instructions from the Department of Basic Education.

“For safety reasons, and according to a circular we received from the department, we found it best that learners stay at home,” she said.

Nefale said the rainfall had been unusually intense. As a result, some learners had not been able to collect their textbooks.

The school was expected to resume on Monday, 19 January, after the department’s advised waiting period, but teaching time would need to be recovered.

Nefale said food supplies had already been delivered for the reopening period, but access roads were in poor condition.

“The roads are full of mud, water and deep potholes. Even teachers struggle to pass, and learner transport is affected,” she said. “We would like the municipality to build higher bridges and fix the roads so that learners and school logistics can move safely during weather like this and school operations can run smoothly.”

The Limpopo Department of Education said it had noted the harsh and severe weather conditions that had caused flooding in some parts of Vhembe and Mopani districts. The South African Weather Services issued a level 9 warning for Wednesday, a day that coincides with the reopening of schools.

Cape Town, Langa

Emotions ran high at Thembani Primary School in Langa, Cape Town. The no-fee school opened four Grade R classes to accommodate 107 new learners, while also welcoming back pupils from Grades 1 to 7. Parents and children arrived buzzing with excitement and tears as they searched for the correct classrooms to begin the 12-year schooling journey.

School principal Joyce Ngezana said the admission process for Grade R had been smooth. Parents were encouraged to apply online, after which walk-ins were accommodated, and parents were informed about the required stationery. She added that the school had enough teachers for the year ahead. However, Ngezana raised concerns about parents who failed to apply for admission and arrived on the first day of school seeking placement. She said: “The issue of admission is still a challenge, especially since the admissions are done online prior.”

Daily Maverick spoke to a parent, Sineliswa Piyose, who was looking for a Grade R placement for her son, Linathi Piyose. She left the premises without getting a place.

“I have come here to plead for a space. The reason I did not apply was that I had decided that he would study in the Eastern Cape; however, the person who was meant to look after him fell sick, and I decided he would study in Cape Town. I wanted this school, and I haven’t checked other schools,” said Piyose.

Meanwhile, parents who applied online were excited about the opening of school, sending their little ones to the first day of school.

“I’m happy because she is starting school. I do not live far from the school. I applied last year, and we came to orientation. The application processes were not difficult; we got a response,” said Mzwandile Tavashe.

Another Grade R parent, Lutho Bongoza, said: “When the application opened, we quickly applied, and got a place here in Thembani. The school called us to confirm placement. We were told to bring stationery, and we did. I live nearby here in 26 Langa,” said Bongoza.

Eastern Cape

The first day of school at Newton High School in KwaMaqoma (Fort Beaufort) in the Eastern Cape was disrupted on Wednesday as aggrieved parents descended on the premises to protest against the lack of classroom space.

The school, which caters only for Grades 10 to 12, has just five classrooms, each reportedly accommodating more than 50 pupils. Parents said the cramped conditions would compromise teaching and learning and have appealed to the Eastern Cape Education Department to urgently provide mobile classrooms.

Among the parents was Nazima Human, whose child is in matric this year. Human said the situation left her anxious about the year ahead.

“It’s unacceptable to have five classrooms full. I feel sorry for all the teachers. How will one teacher discipline and manage that many pupils? Each child won’t get the necessary attention. The quality of education will go down and my child won’t get the attention they need with 60 pupils in a class,” she said.

Parents also complained that the school lacked basic infrastructure, including a staff room and sufficient toilets.

Pellsrus Primary School in Jeffreys Bay says it was relieved that newly refurbished ablution facilities would finally be handed over this week, ending what school leaders described as a long, frustrating struggle for basic dignity as the 2026 school year got underway.

The R2,1-million project to renovate the school’s changing rooms began in September 2024 and was meant to be completed in less than four-and-a-half months, but by November 2025 the work still had not been finalised, leaving the more than 1,200 pupils and staff dependent on just six flush toilets and six chemical toilets.

The situation improved after Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube visited the school in November last year, when the contractor and the provincial department resolved their differences and resumed work.

However, school governing body (SGB) chairperson Vivian van Eck said: “The tranche money we receive from the department is extremely little, and most of it goes towards feeding schemes. There is nowhere near enough funding for basic maintenance.

“There is incredible talent here, but we can’t afford something like a school bus... Parents here simply do not have much money,” Van Eck said. “We even received a letter from the department saying we must not ask for additional funds. Our hands are tied at every turn. The lack of proper funding denies our children opportunities and prevents them from reaching their full potential.”

Meanwhile in Gqeberha, Astra Primary School principal Helma Boggenpoel said: “For the first time in years, I have nothing weighing me down.”

The school, which has 1,124 learners, nine SGB staff members, and 26 state-paid teachers, started the year smoothly.

“All the children are in class, and no one was turned away. We are ready for the year ahead,” Boggenpoel said, attributing the positive start to her faith. “I am done complaining because the Lord provides.”

Speaking at a press briefing in East London on Tuesday, the head of the Eastern Cape Education Department, Sharon Maasdorp, said the delivery of learning and teaching support material, including stationery, had been completed.

Maasdorp said the province had also reduced the number of unplaced learners to fewer than 800, and described the department as significantly more stable than in previous years.

She added: “I want to clarify the issue around the infrastructure grant. The department got its R529-million tranche and it has all been spent. There is no R529-million that has been sent back to the Department of Basic Education.”

Durban, KwaZulu-Natal

Parents were elated to send their children to school today, but some were joining a long queue at the Department of Education’s district office in Durban due to multiple challenges.

One parent said: “I was told by the school my daughter is placed under the Umlazi District, we are based in Pinetown so I’m here to see if we can get a placement closer to where we are based now,” Parent Nosipho Vilakazi told Daily Maverick.

“I am moving from Umgababa to Pinetown because I got a job that side; all the schools around us are full so I’m trying to appeal to the district to help us get a school,” Vilakazi said.

She added that she tried to negotiate with the school to pay at least R1,000 or R2,000 up front, and the rest during the year, but they were not willing. Her daughter was 13 heading to Grade 8.

“I want to ask the department if this is allowed, can a child stay home because a school wants the whole year’s school fees in January. I really just will not be able to get that amount of money right now,” she said.

Another mother said she had a placement, but all the schools in her area insisted on a R4,000 payment up front; otherwise, they threatened to place another child in that space.

“I live in Sydenham, I am out of options, I really can’t afford R4,000 right now while also needing to buy stationery and a uniform,” she said.

A parent who asked not to share her name said: “The process is long because I will have to give proof that my daughter receives the child grant and that I live in that area. They also said I will need to go to the police station and write an affidavit.” DM