The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) has announced that schools in the province are officially full.

According to the department, they have allocated places for 120 778, or 99.43 percent, of the learners for whom applications were received for Grades 1 and 8 for the 2024 school year.

Education MEC David Maynier says placement is currently in progress for 688, or 0.56 percent, Grade 1 and 8 learners, while late applications continue to arrive, with 176 received in just the past three weeks.

Maynier says: “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.”

FACING TOUGH TASK: Education MEC Maynier

Wednesday’s announcement comes just days after the WCED laid out their revised plan for 2024 following a massive R716.4 million cut to their budget.

The WCED explained that tightening their financial belt meant that they needed to cut back on their #BackOnTrack plans which aimed to expand resources for learners in Grades 8 and 10, as well as the parent programme, Rapid School Build plans, and reducing spending on staffing in the department.

However, Maynier says despite the budget cut, the department will continue to build nine new schools to accommodate learners applying for the 2024 school year, as well as 496 classrooms in areas of high demand for placement. He says late applications put pressure on the system as “we do not know where they will seek placement, or what their grades, languages, ages or subjects will be”.

Maynier says: “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, and thus we appeal for patience from parents submitting new applications as they may not be placed before the end of the first term.”

tracy-lynn.ruiters@inl.co.za