Durban - The parent of a Durban Girls’ College pupil, who was one of three to be taken to court last year for failing to pay school fees, has been ordered by the Durban High Court to pay the outstanding amount.
The matter first came before the court in November.
At the time, the parents – who cannot be named to protect the identities of their children – owed a collective sum of more than R200 000, and the school was seeking an order that they pay the outstanding fees and the authority to bar the girls from the property and “refuse to educate them”.
However, Judge Graham Lopes refused to bar the children.
He called it “inappropriate”, and said such action would negatively affect the children.
One parent hired an advocate to argue the case, while another agreed to pay the outstanding amount in several instalments.
The third asked for time to settle, but on Friday the school brought an application before the court seeking relief from her.
According to papers filed by Durban Girls’ College, the parent owed more than R52 000 when the matter first came before the court.
The fees had accumulated since the child was first enrolled at the school in Grade 8 in 2011, and she was, as of last year, still enrolled there.
The school was seeking just over R24 000 and the costs of the application on Friday, and Judge Fikile Mokgohloa granted an order to that effect.
The Mercury