Rural ECD programme beats provincial and national school readiness results
Some 82% of children across Thanda’s ECD programmes were on track to start Grade R in 2026.
Thanda, a community-based NPO working in rural KZN, has released its 2025 Early Learning Outcomes Measure (ELOM) results for children exiting its early childhood development (ECD) programmes at the end of last year.
The results show that 82% of children across Thanda’s ECD programmes were on track to start Grade R in 2026, outperforming provincial and national benchmarks of 31% and 42% respectively.
With Grade R now compulsory, access to early learning has rightly become a national priority. However, the 2025 Datadrive ELOM report highlights a growing concern. Without quality, expanded ECD access risks entrenching inequality rather than reducing it.
“Our results fill us with pride, but also with responsibility,” says Angela Larkan, executive director and co-founder of Thanda.
“They remind us that access to ECD alone is not enough. Quality is what truly determines school readiness.”
Thanda’s programmes operate in Quintile 1 communities, where most ECD centres charge between R51 and R120 per month. Based on national ELOM trends, without Thanda’s intervention, children in these under-resourced communities would be far less likely to enter Grade R on track.
Many would not attend any ECD at all (18%), while those who did would most likely be part of a lower-performing cohort, where only a minority of children are ready for formal schooling (40%). By contrast, 82% of children in Thanda’s programmes were assessed as on track.
“Without a strong ECD curriculum, well-trained teachers and intentional guardian involvement, the gaps we see at school entry will only continue to widen. That is the reality we are working to change,” she added.
Imbewu remains Thanda’s best-practice model, and its curriculum and teacher training approach has been rolled out across all Thanda’s Satellite ECDs and Fun Foundations. Despite operating in a low-income context, Imbewu and the Satellite ECDs continue to achieve results that rival those of some of the most well-resourced ECD programmes in the country. In 2025, the national Quintile 5 High benchmark was 69%, and two of Thanda’s ECD models exceeded this level of performance.
“These results demonstrate what is possible when children are supported by a strong curriculum and well-trained teachers,” said Larkan.
“They offer practical insight into what could be achieved and replicated across under-resourced communities if quality is placed at the centre of ECD.”
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