WCED Completes Its 31st New School under the Infrastructure Plan

Media Statement by Donald Grant, Minister of Education

I am delighted to have seen this morning our 31st new completed school in the province since the inception of our infrastructure plan in 2010. Approximately 23 of these schools are new schools whereas the remaining eight new schools have been completed as part of the WCED replacement programme.

The new Melkbos High School in Melkbosstrand is our latest new school. The school was completed last month, with some of the learners having moved into their new school premises at the end of the last term and the remaining learners having moved in at the start of the second term.

The school had enrolled Grade 8 and 9 learners for the first time at the beginning of the 2012 school year. The learners were temporarily located at Bloubergrant High School while their new school was being completed. A separate section of the Bloubergrant High School was allocated to house the new Melkbos High School learners.

A total of 103 learners are now occupying the new school. Enrolment is set to progress next year to Grade 10. In 2014, it will further progress to Grade 11.

I am delighted that we now have a public ordinary high school in the Melkbosstrand area which caters for both Afrikaans and English learners. This area has dramatically grown in the past decade and continues to grow even further. Parents of learners in Melkbosstrand now have the opportunity to enroll their children in a school in their area, rather than travelling to Bloubergstrand, as most of them have done so in the past.

The new school building can accommodate 1 200 learners and has 27 classrooms, two computer rooms, a library, five laboratories, two specialist rooms, a school hall and sports facilities.

The cost of the new school building is approximately R26 million.

I am pleased with the progress of our infrastructure plan. We are well on our way to exceed the targets we had set for ourselves at the beginning of 2010. This year, the WCED plans to complete a further 16 new schools (13 replacement and three new schools). Our main priority however is to acquire the land owned by the National Government in Grabouw. If this is granted to us, we will see the building of an additional new school.

For enrolment queries for the 2013 school year at Melkbos HS, please contact the school via e-mail finansies@hsmelkbos.co.za or telephonically on 021 553 0086.