Zululand school space shocker
As matrics prepare to write their final exams, Grade 1's are battling to get a foot in the door to begin their school careers.
THOUSANDS of first-time Zululand school children are being denied registration at local public schools as full-house signs went up, leaving desperate parents in crisis.
A number of Zululand schools are being forced to turn away potential candidates, while others have simply not opened their doors for 2016 registration at all.
With most public schools already full, parents are left with little or no options but to keep their children at home.
‘We simply have no space at all,’ said a source from an Empangeni public school.
‘What parents don’t understand is that we physically cannot fit one more desk into the classrooms to accommodate late entries.’
‘One of the contributing factors to the crisis is the increasing demand by rural parents to send their children to urban government schools.’
But while public schools are bursting at the seams, local private schools are still accepting applications, but the cost factor is prohibitive to most parents.
‘Although some of our grades have reached full capacity, our registration dates never close and we are always accepting new applicants,’ said Richards Bay Christian School Principal Bev Chambler.
Independent school owners have stressed the dire need for more schools to be opened.
‘If this country is going to succeed we need to educate people,’ said Empangeni Educare Centre owner Sandra Kendall.
The uThungulu district Department of Education was contacted for comment but had not been able to respond at the time of going to print.
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