The Member of the Executive Committee for Gauteng Education, Panyaza Lesufi, has approved new regulations on school admissions that include changes in feeder zones, which have been increased from a 5km to a 30km radius from the chosen school.
The new regulations will allow parents to apply for their children to be admitted to schools within a 30km radius of their homes.
Lesufi advised that people should apply on time as priority will be given to the people who applied first, regardless of whether they are located close to or far from the school.
“Those who apply early and within the feeder zone will be considered first. You might live closer to school that they do, but if you did not apply on time, you are not going to be considered. Those outside the 30km radius can still apply at any school, but those within the criteria will be assisted first,” said Lesufi.
Lesufi also mentioned that this amendment is going to assist people who have been told they cannot send their children to certain schools due to their financial instability.
“Parents will now have a proper choice of which school they want to send their children to. In some instances, parents have been requested to make advance payments and declare their financial statements before they can register their children.”
The key changes in the regulations are to affirm the power of the Head of Department (HOD) to administer admissions in the province, outlaw all forms of unfair discrimination, delegate the authority of determining feeder zones to the Department, enable the management of admissions in entry phase grades through an online admissions process, and finally, make technical adjustments to bring the admissions process in line with recent court judgments and clarify the criteria for placement of learners.
Lesufi said parents will no longer be forced to send their children to under-performing schools.
“Under-performing schools will be forced to perform and every school will be graded now. This means that when parents start to apply, they will know whether the school is good or not,” he said.
