Over R40 million Paid Out to Help Schools Struggling with Cost of Fee Exemptions

Statement by Debbie Schafer, Western Cape Minister of Education

Every year the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) and our schools receive thousands of applications for fee exemption for school fees at our fee paying schools.

Parents qualify for exemption if the school fees are more than 10% of the parents’ combined annual salary. They can also apply for partial exemption if the fees represent between 2% and 10% of their annual salary depending on the number of children they have at a fee-paying, public school.

A successful application for fee exemption ultimately means that the parent is exempted from paying school fees. This therefore means that the school will not receive that specific learners school fees which places strain on the schools finances.

While we recognise the important role that fee exemptions play in granting access to the poor and relief in tough economic times, we are also cognisant of the fact that many of our schools are struggling financially and are dependent on the collection of school fees in order to sustain various projects, resources or governing body staff establishments in their schools.

In 2011, the Western Cape Government made a decision to financially support these schools, introducing for the first time, fee compensation to schools for exempted school fees. While the initiative supported parents applying for exemption because of unemployment or loss of income, it also assisted schools in compensating them for income lost.

Since 2011, we have continued to support schools by providing fee compensation. This year, the WCED is pleased to announce that it will be paying out over R44 million to fee-paying schools in compensation for fee exemptions granted in 2013.

This is over 100% more than the WCED paid out four years ago and is indicative of the tough economic circumstances many of our parents, and subsequently our schools, currently find themselves in.

For example, in 2010, 48 974 learners applied for fee exemption. This amount increased to over 70 000 in 2011. It then increased from 90 000 in 2012 and to 105 124 in 2013.

The table below outlines the increases in fee exemptions and compensation to schools:

While I am pleased that we have been able to assist our schools in providing fee compensation for fee exemption for some of our poorer learners, the reality is that there are a growing number of parents who simply cannot afford to pay school fees.  This is an unfortunate consequence of our ailing economy. As a consequence, more has to be done to assist the poor and our schools serving poor communities.

Basic Education is a human right in terms of section 29 of the Constitution, so government has to provide it.

I therefore again appeal to Minister Motshekga to amend the Quintile system.

This system has the effect that if a school is in an area that is regarded as more affluent than other areas, it receives less funding from Government and is categorised as a fee paying school, even if it is in fact serving very poor learners. 

In the Western Cape we have tried to alleviate the effects of this by allowing some schools in Quintile 4 to apply to be no-fee schools, however, due to our own financial constraints we cannot expand this further this year.

While this, and fee compensation has provided some assistance, we ultimately need to change the current Quintile system in order for schools that genuinely serve poor learners to receive the requisite support from National Government.

We understand that this would not erase all fee exemptions in this province, but it would certainly help many parents who cannot afford to pay school fees, as well as schools in Quintile 4 and 5 which are struggling financially because of non-payment of fees.