Cape Town - Arrangements are to be made to accommodate pupils and permanent teachers from Uitsig High School elsewhere, Western Cape Education Department (WCED) spokesperson Bronagh Hammond said on Thursday.
This was after the Constitutional Court dismissed an appeal by the school against Western Cape Education MEC Debbie Schäfer’s decision to close it, leaving the pupils and teachers in distress.
Hammond said that according to their system, the school had 101 pupils, with seven educators, three of whom were permanent. She said the arrangements to accommodate them would be discussed with their district.
Uitsig High School’s governing body (SGB) has been fighting for about three years to keep the school’s doors open, calling on the provincial education department to upgrade it.
SGB chairperson Sharon Koeberg said: “We are sad and feel violated.”
Koeberg said they had not been informed whether the school was closing on not.
“We keep on hearing this from the news,” she said. “My fear is that the school will be vandalised while we are still here. The department must come and address the community on their plans.”
SGB chairperson Sharon Koeberg said: “We are sad and feel violated.” Video: Sisonke Mlamla/Cape Argus
Hammond said the WCED had received media queries as soon as the judgment was announced.
“Unfortunately, we cannot control time lines in this regard. The necessary discussions will, however, take place with the school management.”
She said the school had for many years been plagued by vandalism, theft and violence, to the extent that it was no longer a safe environment for pupils and staff and was not conducive to proper teaching and learning.
Schäfer’s spokesperson, Jessica Shelver, said they were pleased that the Constitutional Court had dismissed the appeal by Uitsig’s SGB against Schäfer’s 2017 decision to close the school.
“The order was handed down on the basis that they have no reasonable prospect of success in any appeal,” Shelver said.
She said the decision was made in the best interest of the pupils.
“It has taken nearly two years with a lot of additional funding having to be spent to keep the school open while the case was before the courts.
“We are very happy to have finality in the matter, and that the pupils can now receive the quality education that they deserve.”
She said Schäfer would be holding discussions with district officials in the area, and would seek legal advice as to what the next steps were with respect to proceeding with the closure of the school in the best interests of the few remaining pupils who were still in attendance.
Former Cosatu Western Cape regional secretary Tony Ehrenreich has been supporting the Uitsig SGB in its fight to keep the school open.
“The department has managed the school into the ground,” he said.
He added that the Uitsig community must be saluted for fighting for their children’s education and standing up for what was right.