Education
With reference to the reply to question 9 of 26 February 2021:
- (a) Of the 1 544 school listed on the Department’s User Asset Management Plan, how many schools have (i) libraries, (ii) computer rooms and (iii) science laboratories and (b) what has happened to the 95 schools unaccounted for in the response (1 067 primary schools and 382 secondary schools equal 1 449 schools but there are 1 544 schools in the province according to the Department’s User Asset Management Plan and therefore 95 schools are unaccounted for);
- (a) what budget has been made available to resolve the problems at the 78 schools that have been identified as constructed from “inappropriate material” and (b) what budget has been made available for repairs at the 22 schools in need of repair;
- whether children are still attending the schools in (2); if so, (a) what are the relevant details and (b) in which areas are these schools situated;
- (a) what budget has been made available for repairs and maintenance at the schools identified and (b) how many school buildings have been transferred to the Department of Transport and Public Works since 2009?
- [a] [i] Libraries: 528
[ii] Computer rooms: 1178
[iii] Science laboratories: 886
[b] There are 1 544 schools in the Western Cape – this includes 14 education facilities [such as Art and Music centres], 72 Special Schools, 1 450 Public Ordinary Schools and 8 state-owned ECD centres.
The member’s previous question specifically sought the number of primary and high public schools. The response therefore did not include Special Schools, Pre-Primary Schools & other education facilities.
[2] [a] The full or partial replacement of inappropriate materials at the remaining 78 public schools is budget dependent. Various measures are put in place to minimise the risks to all who use the facilities at these schools. These include:
- Partial replacement of unsafe building sections built from inappropriate material or that show deterioration to the point of imminent failure;
- Renewals [retaining of super structure];
- Replacement of sections with mobile classrooms as a temporary measure in anticipation of the permanent replacement; and
- A ringfenced corrective maintenance budget.
On current plan, R1.2 billion for capital projects and R82.6 million for emergency maintenance is allocated to 36 of these schools for the period FY21/22 to FY 25/26.
The breakdown in terms of number of schools to be addressed is:
- R468 million is allocated to replace 8 schools. These schools are currently in design or construction phase and scheduled to be completed by FY 2024/25;
- 2 of these schools needed emergency maintenance and R3.1 million has been allocated in FY21/22 for this maintenance;
- R770 million is allocated to repair or replace 15 schools. These schools are currently in planning phase and work is scheduled to be completed by FY 2025/26.
- 6 of these schools need urgent stabilisation and R19.9 million has been allocated in FY21/22 for emergency maintenance;
- R59.6 million has been allocated in FY21/22 for the emergency and preventative maintenance at a further 13 schools.
Due to funding shortfalls, the focus for the remaining 42 schools will be to restore minimum functionality, and the emergency maintenance budget will be used for any rehabilitation work required to minimise the risk to the health and safety of all that use these school facilities.
[b] 22 schools have been prioritised for repair and rehabilitation based on the assessment of the condition of the infrastructure. R314 million has been budgeted to FY2025/26 for these 22 schools.
[3] [a] Yes, all 78 schools are functional schools, and in total 62 841 children are enrolled in these schools in 2021. The location details of these schools are attached [Annexure A].
[4] [a] R109.6 million has been allocated over three years to FY2023/24 for maintenance purposes at 24 of the 78 schools.
[b] The Department of Transport and Public Works [DTPW] is the custodian of Western Cape Government buildings and holds the records of property use by the various departments – including transfers of auxiliary buildings and the former sites of schools when they have moved to new buildings.
The WCED keeps records of school closures resulting in the use of the related property being relinquished to the DTPW. One school was closed and use of the property relinquished to DTPW since 2009.
