Cape Town – Simon's Town School principal Jean Human has made an impassioned plea for donations to ensure eight of the school’s teachers are paid, and to ensure there are still teachers for pupils once the school fully reopens.
“My school is in a sad predicament. Even though we have many learners from poor socio-economic backgrounds, the government sees us as a previously advantaged school simply because we are situated in Simon’s Town - a very affluent area.
"Annually we have written off close to R1 million due to exemptions, because parents are just not able to pay school fees," said Human.
"This has now been further exacerbated by the lockdown, where parents have lost their jobs and cannot pay the fees. We rely on the payment of school fees to pay our school governing body (SGB)-appointed staff, but this has become even more difficult.”
Human said she had now resorted to making a public plea for donations as the need to pay the salaries of eight SGB-appointed teachers had placed a lot of strain on their finances.
She said they had had to terminate the services of five SGB-appointed staff, while the remaining eight had to take salary cuts of up to 40%. “They earn between R10000 and R12000 a month, which is a pittance"
Human said an educator relief fund had been initiated and government-employed staff at the school had committed a portion of their salaries to this fund.
Anyone wishing to donate to the school’s relief fund can use the banking details: Bank: First National Bank; Account name: Simon’s Town School; Branch code: 250655; Account number: 620 331 20669; Account type: Cheque / Current; Reference: Educator Relief Fund (and name)