Assistance for parents still requiring placement in schools in 2019

It is that time of the year again when parents/guardians start to panic if their children have not been accepted into any schools for the 2019 school year.

Schools were to inform parents/guardians by the last day of the 2^nd term, 22 June 2018, if their child or children had been accepted into their school following their application for enrolment for 2019.

Parents/guardians are now required to confirm acceptance. If their children have been accepted into more than one school, they must indicate which place they will accept and they must also inform schools that they have elected to decline.

This will allow schools to inform other parents of children that had previously not been accepted, of additional spaces available at their school. This is largely done through a waiting list process for which parents apply.

Understandably, this is a very stressful time for parents and many who have not managed to confirm acceptance at a school for 2019 are unsure what to do next.

We encourage parents to first contact schools in their area to determine if additional spaces have become available and confirm their placement on the school's waiting list.

Should a parent not be successful then they can contact their nearest district office.

The WCED's district offices each have officials that are assigned to deal with placement queries, and have access to school admission lists.

They can advise parents to apply at schools where places are indicated as available. They may also request parents to fill out a learner application form, which will be uploaded onto the WCED'S School Admissions Management Information (SAMI) system.

This system allows officials to track which learners need placement, the areas in which they live and the grade that is required. Therefore, if spaces are available in a certain area that would suit the needs of the parent and the child, the WCED can then inform the parent to apply.

We remind parents that they may not necessarily get into their school of choice. It is a reality that some schools are more popular than others, for a variety of reasons, and therefore receive hundreds of applications for only a handful of places. Admissions for 2019 in some of these schools are closed as they have already reached capacity and have confirmed acceptance.

The WCED will therefore try assist parents' individual needs as much as possible, but cannot guarantee that placement at these schools will be available. We ask that parents remain patient while we try our best to accommodate their children.

Please see below details of the relevant officials to contact should you need assistance with placement:

Maps on the various district boundaries are available on the WCED website: https://wcedonline.westerncape.gov.za/documents/enrolment/index.html