NW Education to implement resolutions on the summit to address challenges of school safety

   March 15, 2019

The North West Education and Sport Development MEC, Sello Lehari highlighted that the department will implement the resolutions drawn from the two days Provincial School Safety Summit, in order to deal with challenges of school safety in schools. The summit was held at Kgaswane Country Lodge in Rustenburg, on 12 to 13 March 2019

MEC Lehari expressed that the province experienced a wave of violence in schools which in most cases led to injuries, killings and damage to property. He said, one death of a learner or one teacher is one too many.

“In view of this, the department took it upon itself to gather all stakeholders under one roof to hold a dialogue, heart to heart, soul to soul and eyeball to eyeball on what are the underlying causes of this violence and what needs to be done to deal with it once and for all. This sparked a lot of interest in many stakeholders in education”, said MEC Lehari.

Over 500 delegates representing learners, teachers, parents, School Governing Bodies, Congress of the South African Students (COSAS), Teacher Unions, Religious bodies, South African Police Service (SAPS), Department of Social Development, Community Safety and Transport Management, North West Provincial Sport Confederation, and departmental officials attended the summit

MEC Lehari emphasized that, the Summit noted that schools are the reflection of the society and that maintaining schools and communities should be based on peace, respect, non-racialism safety and security which must be everyone’s concern and responsibility.

RESOLUTIONS OF THE SUMMIT

There were ten commissions addressing different topics.

The summit, amongst others, resolved on the following:

  • Establish a Provincial School Safety Steering Committee by 30 April 2019
  • All districts to hold their individual School safety summit before 30 May 2019
  • Hold a subsequent School Safety Summit in 2020 to review implementation progress
  • Intensify the Quality Learning and Teaching Campaign and its related structures with special focus on school safety
  • Encourage parental involvement and active participation in schools
  • Ensure that the codes of conduct foster good behaviour and deter ill-discipline amongst all stake-holders
  • All schools will implement learner code of conduct which should be reviewed to address emerging social ills
  • All schools to display code of conduct in strategic places for everybody to see and read
  • Ensure that security personnel is provided in all public schools on incremental basis starting with 200 schools from 1st April 2019 onwards
  • Ensure that standard of infrastructure in our schools restores the dignity of our Learners and teachers and supports the culture of learning and teaching
  • Ensure that our schools maintain a balance between curriculum delivery and sport
  • Seek funding for school safety and security from provincial and national treasuries

    • The department resolved to apply consequence management (disciplinary) against anyone who fails to adhere to any resolution taken by the Summit.
    MEC Lehari closed the summit by emphasizing that, enough is enough!

    End.

    Issued by Media Liaison Unit
    For more information, please contact:
    Elias Malindi
    Acting Media Liaison Manager
    0721154855/0728928399

Author: desd