Schools are places meant for learning and enriching the minds of children, which is why they should be safe environments for learners and teachers.
A space where the only focus should be providing the best education to learners. To ensure that this takes place, the Department of Basic Education (DBE) has taken steps to make sure schools are safe environments.
Ensuring safety at schools includes preventing crime and violence at schools, having physical security on school premises, preventing sexual abuse and harassment at schools, and preventing school-based crime.
The Department has taken the following steps to ensure the safety and security of learners and teachers while at school:
National School Safety Framework
A National School Safety Framework was developed to assist schools in dealing with and managing incidents of crime and violence. Furthermore, the framework contains tools that assess physical security (safety audits) and learner safety surveys.
Prevent Sexual Abuse and Harassment
The Department further developed the protocol that deals with incidents of corporal punishment and the Protocol for the Management and Reporting of Sexual Abuse and Harassment in Schools.
Prevent School-Based Violence
The Department signed a collaborative protocol with the South African Police Service to manage school-based crime prevention programmes.
Quality Learning and Teaching Campaign
The Quality Learning and Teaching Campaign (QLTC) assists in bringing parents and social partners to address the challenges faced by schools.
Schools Code of Conduct
All schools must have a learner code of conduct that each learner and their parent should sign.
The department has also requested that all schools develop safety plans to ensure the safety of their staff and learners. These plans should be based on the audits conducted by the department.
