UPSET parents from Voorbrug in Delft claim that Delft Primary School gave them ‘false hope’ of enrolling their children in Grade R and now their children are forced to be at home for the year.
About 50 parents from Voorbrug went to the school yesterday with their laaities dressed in uniform to address why the children were not accepted.
The parents claim that they applied online in August and when they did not get a response, they went to the school and were told they should bring in their hard copies.
The parents claim that they were then told there would be a place for their children at the school.
However, now say they have been given the run around as the school would send them to the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) and the WCED would send them back to the school.
Mom Tasneem Pietersen said that she filled out an application at the Education Department for Delft Primary, Vergenoedgt Primary and Roosendal Primary but was unsuccessful for all three schools.
She explains: “When I asked why my child was unsuccessful, I got no response.
“We are from the community and live close to the school, our children cannot travel to other areas because they are still young but children from other areas get first priority and they are in a class.”
“I wrote a hand-written appeal but they knew that we were not going to get place for our kids but they kept giving us different stories and telling us to come back on different dates.
WCED spokesperson Bronagh Hammond explains: “The WCED has engaged with the school. The school has repeatedly informed parents that the school is oversubscribed.
“An application to the school does not mean acceptance. The district can confirm also that the school is full and that rumours indicating that there is available space are not accurate.”
“Regardless, if there has been a misunderstanding in communication between the groups, we apologise and will try to assist.
“We do, however, require the learner information in order to do so. This will require contact with the district office.”