Teachers may soon have housing on school premises if a pilot project in Bellville South proves successful.
Premier Alan Winde has given approval for Cameron Dugmore, official leader of the opposition in the Western Cape, to go ahead with a pilot project to build staff housing on school premises. Kasselsvlei Comprehensive High School in Bellville South will be the first trial school.
Dugmore said the aim was to help protect schools from theft and vandalism by having people living on site, as well as to open up resources for children after-hours and to contribute in a small way to Cape Town’s housing crisis.
While Dugmore was MEC for Education from 2004 to 2008, he noticed that a legacy of apartheid design was that many schools in the Cape Flats and township areas have unused land on the premises. Some schools had even erected fences around their buildings, cutting off vacant land that belongs to the school.
“This underutilised land then became the territory of gangs selling drugs and using it as a thoroughfare,” Dugmore said.
At the entrance to Kasselsvlei High is a grassy tract of land where Dugmore envisions building eight to 10 apartments. Funding would potentially come from the departments of Human Settlements and Education and sources of housing subsidies. Teachers could then rent the apartments from school governing bodies.
Ronald Bantom has been principal at the school for 14 years. He said the idea first came about in 2007, and would mean a relief from vandal attacks when the school was deserted after hours.
“Our schools are bad during weekends and after hours. The criminal element easily have access to enter our schools and vandalise.”
Bantom said having teachers available in the afternoons would completely change the pupils’ school day.
“Where they normally run home after school, they will be able to stay late and do sports after school, do computer work, research, because teachers will be available on the premises,” he said.
“The computer labs can remain open until late. That will create access for our learners because a lot of our learners live in backyard dwellings and don’t have resources at home.”
Having housing on site, Bantom said, would also help the school attract high-calibre teachers to continue improving maths and science marks.
Maths teacher Jerome Erentzen said staff housing on the premises was long overdue. “Week on week we’ve had break ins and serious damage done to the infrastructure of the school,” he said. “If we have teachers present, it will be a deterrent.”
Fawzia van der Heyden has been a teacher at the school for 33 years, teaching life orientation and Afrikaans, and serving as the school counsellor.
She said despite previous bad experiences after hours at the school, she would feel comfortable moving into an apartment on the premises.
“I used to come on a Saturday to do catch up (work), but I’m too scared today and I wouldn’t set foot on these premises after hours,” Van der Heyden said. “So it’s a good thing, if there’s life here at school, you will feel free to come here anytime. I will come live here. I wouldn’t feel threatened.”
She said it wouldn’t be a problem for pupils to know where their teachers lived and where to find them at all times. “Hopefully they won’t abuse that situation.”
Weekend Argus