A significant educational crisis is unfolding in the Western Cape as the start of the 2025 school year approaches, with more than 3,000 Grade 1 and Grade 8 learners still waiting to be placed in schools. The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) has confirmed that it has received over 27,000 applications for Grade 1 and over 96,000 for Grade 8, making the task of accommodating every learner increasingly difficult. While the WCED managed to place 97% of learners by December 4, 2024, the remaining unplaced children represent a growing concern as late applications continue to flood in. As a result, many learners are facing uncertainty as they await school placements, and the situation is expected to worsen once the new school year begins.
This crisis is not new to the province. Last year, Equal Education (EE) and the Equal Education Law Centre (EELC) took legal action against the WCED for failing to place out-of-school learners in the Metro East Education District months into the academic year. The department has made some progress, with 3,698 learners currently awaiting placement, but the fact remains that thousands of children will start the 2025 school year without a guaranteed spot.
In total, there are 1,468 schools in the province, enrolling over 1.2 million learners, including more than 20,000 special needs students. Despite efforts to expand, such as the construction of six new schools and the addition of 180 classrooms by January 2025, the department is struggling to keep pace with the increasing demand. Additional schools are expected to open later in the year, but this expansion will not be enough to accommodate all the learners waiting for placement. The WCED has also pledged to review the numbers of learners at schools after ten school days to better assess the situation, but the reality remains that many children will begin the school year without a place, continuing the annual cycle of delays.
The crisis has drawn sharp criticism from local political figures, particularly from Khalid Sayed, leader of the ANC in the provincial legislature. He argues that this ongoing problem highlights deeper issues within the provinceβs educational system. βEvery year, thousands of learners miss out on weeks or even months of education, and some remain unplaced for the entire year,β said Sayed. He attributes this issue to the provincial governmentβs failure to address the shortage of schools and the overcrowding in classrooms, worsened by the loss of over 2,400 teaching positions. According to Sayed, these cuts have led to larger class sizes and fewer available spaces for learners, exacerbating the problem. βThe DA-led government has had access to additional national resources, but instead of using them for sustainable, long-term solutions, they have invested in temporary fixes like the rapid school build programme,β he added, accusing the provincial government of neglecting the root causes of the crisis.
The lack of infrastructure development is another key issue highlighted by critics of the current system. Vanessa Le Roux, spokesperson for Parents for Equal Education SA (PEESA), expressed concern that the situation would worsen when schools reopen on January 15. “We’ve lost 2,400 teachers, and with the unplaced learners crisis, itβs going to be total chaos,” Le Roux said, predicting that district offices would be flooded with parents trying to secure places for their children. One of the main contributors to the crisis, according to Le Roux, is the failure to build new schools to meet the growing demand. “Every year they claim new schools are being built, but the reality is that they arenβt,” she said. “The classrooms they promise are not ready on time, and children will be left at home or crammed into overcrowded classrooms, where the risk of social ills is high.”
Le Roux further criticized the governmentβs reliance on temporary mobile classrooms, which she described as a short-term solution to an increasingly urgent problem. “Schools with 40 to 50 children per class are being forced to add mobile classrooms, and in the foundation phase, some teachers are managing classes of 60 children,” she pointed out. This overload is putting an enormous strain on teachers, who are already dealing with large class sizes. The solution of mobile classrooms, according to Le Roux, is simply not enough to address the deeper issues of overcrowding and inadequate resources in schools that are already struggling to cope with demand.
The situation is dire. As the start of the school year draws closer, there is growing concern over the inability of the Western Capeβs education system to provide quality education to every child. While the provincial government has pledged to build new schools and expand existing facilities, the pace of development is far too slow to meet the urgent demand. This educational bottleneck is exacerbating social inequalities and creating a cycle of disruption for thousands of learners. Without urgent action to address the shortage of schools, overcrowded classrooms, and teacher shortages, the Western Cape risks further exacerbating the educational gap and depriving children of the opportunities they deserve.
The question remains whether the provincial government can live up to its promises. Will it finally tackle the systemic issues facing the education sector and find lasting solutions, or will the unplaced learner crisis continue to persist, leaving thousands of children without a fair chance at education? As the 2025 school year approaches, the pressure is on for both the government and the education department to deliver.