AT a time when learners should be preparing for the final term tests, learners at Khulangolwazi Special School have been locked out of their school. Khulangolwazi Special School in Montclair has officially shut its doors in a gesture of defiance against what parents say is a neglect for the needs of the school by the KZN Department of Education.

The school’s closure highlights the plight of a string of special needs schools across the province that have been pushed to breaking point, with no money, no support staff positions and most importantly no government response.

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The school governing body (SGB) decided to shut the school today (October 14), following a meeting with parents, who agreed that the school could no longer continue without support from the department.

Issues of neglect:

“Special schools have been requesting support from the government,” said SGB chairperson Xolile Nyuswa. “We have written letters, and we went to the MEC’s office in May. We requested for additional support staff and busses including busses that were taken in for repairs but never came back. We also requested for vacant positions in the schools to be filled, but they have yielded no results or response.”

The department has also not provided the school with its full allocation of funds for this year, which has made it difficult for the school to manage itself. According to the South African National Association for Special Education’s (Sanase) memorandum handed over to the premier’s office, for the 2025 financial year, the department was assumed to pay special needs schools four tranches a year as opposed to the previous norm of one tranche per year.

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“Special schools in KZN have all received a quarter of the annual allocation at the end of August 2025. With five schools of 77 receiving a second allocation in the first week of September 2025,” read the memorandum.

Nyuswa said that at Khulangolwazi they received only one payment at the start of the year. “The payment we received was a partial first-term payment, not even a full tranche, and that’s all we have received throughout the year. There’s no money to be running the school as it should be run,” said Nyuswa.

She added that the parents have decided to stand together and fight. “It is not for the teachers to fight because these are our children,” said Nyuswa.

Taking matters into their own hands:

Along with the support of Sanase, the school has joined in the shutdown until they receive feedback from the department and everyone else involved and until they find solutions on how the school will operate. The decision has raised concerns from some parents as well, as learners should be preparing to sit for the final examinations, not having their studies interrupted.

Sicelo Miya, father of one of the learners at the school, said he is concerned with how long the shutdown will be and how it will affect the learners who are now forced to be at home.

Department of Education’s response:

Muzi Mahlambi, spokesperson for the Department of Education, said that they are looking into the matter. “The department is aware of the issue and is dealing with it,” he said.

For now, Khulangolwazi’s gates remain locked. Parents say they won’t reopen them until the department delivers answers and not promises.

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