St Martin’s School to be remodelled into a more sustainable institution

St Martin’s announced on July 20 that it has renewed itself with a learner model, streamlined a bulging subject offering and will be providing its high school learners with a modern, eco-friendly modular classroom environment – all housed on one campus.

This new campus will be located at St Martin’s Preparatory School campus, which alleviates the issue of the high school’s location in an area of urban decay.

Earlier this year, the St Martin’s School’s Governing Council, while exploring options for sustainability, felt that the school needed to enter a Section 189a consultative process to allow and enable engagement with staff and parents to explore options that had not already been tabled.

This consultative process has assisted in ensuring the school remains sustainable for the foreseeable future. Those who have been through a Section 189 process will understand the anxiety, anger and frustration it causes staff, the school leadership, students and parents.

These emotions notwithstanding, the community rallied together and developed a model that will see the school being remodelled into a more sustainable institution and continue its great South African legacy.

Headmaster Thomas Hagspihl said, “St Martin’s School is a school with a great legacy. Many prominent South Africans, such as Hugh Masekela, Oliver Tambo, Es’kia Mpahlele and Fikile Bam, to name a few, were schooled at St Martin’s, formerly St Peter’s School, in Rosettenville.

“The early years of St Martin’s school had its roots as far back as 1922. These roots are closely linked to the history of Rosettenville and for many years been the beacon of education in the area.

“The Anglican Church established St Peter’s School for young black men and in these early years the school was known as the ‘Black Eton’.

“St Peter’s closed in 1956, as the school leaders of the time would not subscribe to the apartheid government’s policies. The school was reopened as St Martin’s School in 1958.

“These changes to St Martin’s will ensure that this great institution continues for generations of South African children to be educated in a modern space that continues to uphold the legacy of those who once walked its original corridors.”