Dulcie September learners miss further weeks of schooling
Learners are once again at home as the long-standing infrastructure crisis at Dulcie September School continues unresolved.
Teaching and learning at Dulcie September Primary School in Rabie Ridge remain at a standstill.
Learners are still at home since early April as concerns over unsafe and deteriorating infrastructure continue to escalate.
Parents have once again kept their children away from school, protesting and saying they will only allow them to return once urgent repairs and safety concerns are properly addressed.
The prolonged absence has reignited frustration in the community, where similar disruptions have been reported over several years.
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The Democratic Alliance (DA) has called for immediate intervention from Gauteng MEC for Infrastructure Development Jacob Mamabolo and Gauteng Education MEC Lebogang Maile, urging that structural engineers, occupational health and safety officials, and electricity inspectors be deployed to assess conditions at the school.
DA Member of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature Sergio Isa Dos Santos said the party uncovered alarming conditions during an oversight visit conducted on April 20.
According to Dos Santos, eight ablution blocks have been closed due to their poor condition, leaving approximately 2 500 learners dependent on just 20 portable toilets. He further claimed that parents have raised concerns about health issues, particularly among girls, who reportedly developed infections linked to the sanitation facilities.
Teachers, he added, are also working under difficult conditions, with ablution facilities reportedly lacking basic infrastructure, such as taps, toilet seats, and functional doors.
The oversight visit also revealed that 11 mobile classrooms are currently out of use due to structural defects, worsening overcrowding in already strained learning spaces. Broken windows, leaking roofs, and exposed wiring were also identified as ongoing safety hazards.
Dos Santos alleged that conditions worsened after mobile classrooms were relocated to an adjacent site in June 2025, where substandard workmanship reportedly left infrastructure in a hazardous state.
He said repeated commitments by the Gauteng department of education (GDE) have not yet translated into meaningful intervention.
“This is yet another example of government failure to ensure safe and dignified learning environments.” Dos Santos added that learners are losing valuable schooling time that cannot be recovered.
The school’s challenges are not new. Parents said the infrastructure crisis has persisted for close to a decade, with repeated protests and complaints yielding little lasting change.
Earlier this year, when the school closure first made headlines, GDE spokesperson Steve Mabona acknowledged awareness of the situation. He said repairs had been carried out on doors and windows of mobile classrooms around June 2025, but that some of the infrastructure was later vandalised.
Mabona also indicated that officials had visited the school and committed to addressing concerns, including the provision of additional mobile toilets. He further stated that the school has been approved for a permanent brick-and-mortar structure, with a contractor already introduced to the school community.
Despite these assurances, learners continue to remain at home as uncertainty continues over when safe and stable schooling conditions will be restored.
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