Cape Town - The number of children who are attending an “occupied” mobile school in Dunoon is increasing each day, residents say.
The classrooms of the vacant school were occupied earlier this month by a group of parents and other residents who say the two primary schools in the area couldn’t accommodate them, because they are full.
The classrooms were used by Sophakama Primary until that school was moved to permanent structures several months ago.
Two weeks ago residents said there were 300 children in the area that were unplaced.
Last Monday, officials from the Western Cape Education Department visited the site to determine which children had to be placed.
They found 48 of compulsory school-going age needed placement.
Jessica Shelver, the spokeswoman for Education MEC Debbie Schäfer, said residents and the Equal Education Law Centre (EELC) had given the department several lists of names, which were being verified.
“The WCED has advised the EELC that it will locate unplaced learners in schools once their ages, prior education and home address details have been verified.”
She said the department was negotiating with the City of Cape Town for continued use of the site.
Shelver said officials work in the area every day and would have noticed several hundred children in the area not in school.
Cape Argus