GARDEN ROUTE | KAROO NEWS - Year after year a cloud of desperation looms in the foyers of many school buildings with the start of the new academic year. 

Children who have not yet been placed in the school system wait patiently with their desperate parents in the hope of positive news from the administrative bodies.

Bronagh Hammond, director of communication for the Western Cape Education Department (WCED), says despite the fact that their department has worked hard to ensure that learners have been placed timeously, they are still receiving new late applications, which places increased pressure on officials and schools. 

"Our schools are also now closed, and therefore, we are in many instances unable to confirm placement until schools reopen." Parents who are still looking for placements for their children are asked to contact the Eden and Central Karoo district office for assistance at 044 803 8300.

"We make a special appeal to parents to answer the phone calls from the department when officials call with an offer of placement. We are still finding that parents are uncontactable. If your contact details have changed, please notify your district office immediately," says Hammond.

"The growth in learner numbers, as well as parents submitting late (or no) applications, remain big challenges each year. On average an extra 18 000 to 20 000 learners join our schools each year, which would require building, staffing and furnishing at least 20 schools every year, which is something we simply do not have enough finances or resources for. 

"In addition, since the choice of school is in the domain of parents, we have some difficulty in predicting the areas of choice when a parent does not apply timeously.

"We want to thank parents for their patience during the process and assure them that we are working hard to place learners."

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