PAROW
Woensdag, 4 November 2020 | Tel: 021 910 6500 | e-pos: nuus@tygerburger.co.za
@TygerBurger
TygerBurger
Students show support Staff and students of the Stellenbosch University Anatomy Society (SUAS) recently showed their support for breast cancer awareness during the Sanlam Cape Town Virtual Marathon. The group sponsored a water station during the marathon for those who ran to raise funds and awareness for breast cancer, as well as to support the #zonnylovebox project. The marathon was held on Sunday 18 October. The team are from left Prof Karin Baatjes, Chantelle Marais, Kerryn MacDermott, Daniella Lamprecht, Robyn Lunn-Collier and Stephanie Lathe. Breast Cancer Awareness Month is celebrated annually in October. To learn more about the SUAS visit www.sun.ac.za/suas.
COVID-19: NO FUNDRAISERS
Schools feeling the pinch RICHARD ROBERTS @richardjohn_rj
T
he Covid-19 pandemic has had an adverse effect on more than just the health of the country’s population and the economy. Schools are also now struggling to keep their head above water as a result of this worldwide pandemic. One of the schools that is not able to stay afloat financially is the Parow Inclusive School in Second Avenue. The school mostly has foreign learners enrolled whose parents are now unable to pay school fees due to a loss of work, or earning less of an income, says one of the school’s educators. “It is also a struggle to raise funds at this time. We would like to appeal to the community to try and help give these children quality education,” the educator says. Charlotte Stopforth, school principal, concurs saying it is true that they are struggling
financially, now more than ever. “We are a full service inclusive school, meaning that we are a mainstream school that also accommodates learners with diverse special needs. Since 2016, two-thirds of our resources with regards to learners with special needs have been cut. “This happened despite the fact that the number of learners with special needs grew by 48%. “We remain a quintile five school despite the fact that 32% of our learners are foreigners and many of these parents do not have job security. Being a quintile five school means we get R1,25 for a learner per day from the Western Cape Education Department (WCED). “Before Covid-19 we processed 175 applications for exemption of school fees. This however grew to 215 after lockdown,” says Stopforth. She says during the course of a normal
year they have had many fundraising events to help them stay afloat. “This year most of that was of course not possible.” Stopforth says they have made numerous budget cuts to survive, in some cases to the detriment of good inclusive school practice. Kerry Mauchline, spokesperson for the provincial minister of education, Debbie Schäfer, confirmed that many schools have been struggling to pay staff and other expenses due to a decrease in fee collection from parents. Many schools also rely on their fee collection to pay the additional school governing body (SGB) posts, over and above their establishment provided by the WCED, says Mauchline. “The WCED has encouraged parents to pay school fees, where possible, throughout the lockdown period. It is however understandable that many parents could have had a loss of income over these past few months. Parents who have been laid off, or contracts
cancelled and are unemployed can apply for fee exemption. “It is important that the parents do fill in these forms if they qualify, as these forms are then sent to the WCED by schools when applying for fee compensation,” explains Mauchline. She says there are approximately 570 schools that charge school fees in the Western Cape. “As an example, in terms of compensation for fee exemptions, 556 schools submitted successful claims for a total of 86 964 learners amounting to more than R58 million for fee compensation for the 2018 school year.” A learner is exempted from paying school fees if: . He or she is an orphan or has been abandoned by his or her parents. . He or she is a learner for whom a poverty-linked state social grant is paid. V To page 2
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