Urgent Assistance Required: Failure to Process School Transfer After Bullying Incident

Dear Honourable Minister,

I am writing to you with profound concern regarding the continued failure of the Department of Education to protect and uphold my child’s constitutional right to education following a serious bullying incident and a prolonged, unresolved school transfer process.

My child was a learner at Perseverance High School in Belhar. During 2024, my child was subjected to severe bullying, which resulted in a broken ankle. Given the seriousness of the incident, I opened a case at the Belhar Police Station. I subsequently approached the Department of Education offices in Parow to formally lodge a complaint and apply for my child to be transferred to another school, as her safety and wellbeing were clearly at risk.

Despite complying with all required procedures, no action was taken. When I later visited the Department of Education offices in Lower Long Street, Cape Town, I was informed that no transfer application had ever been submitted on my child’s behalf. I was therefore compelled to resubmit all documentation in October 2025.

In November 2025, I returned to the department for a follow-up and was advised to come back in the new year. I did so again today, only to be met with further inaction. Instead of receiving assistance, I was directed to stand in an excessively long queue merely to make an enquiry, with no acknowledgement of the urgency or gravity of my child’s circumstances.

The cumulative impact of these failures has been devastating. My child has become deeply disheartened and emotionally distressed. She is a motivated learner with aspirations of completing her schooling and pursuing further studies after matriculation. Due to the ongoing lack of intervention, her education has been effectively interrupted for almost an entire academic year.

As a direct consequence of the bullying and the absence of adequate departmental support, my child was forced to relocate. It is profoundly unfair that a child who was the victim of violence and ************ has had to endure such life-altering consequences, including the loss of her school, community, and sense of security.

I wish to emphasise that Section 29(1)(a) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa guarantees every child the right to basic education. This right is immediately realisable and may not be limited or delayed due to administrative inefficiencies or procedural failures. The prolonged exclusion of my child from the schooling system constitutes a serious violation of this constitutional right.

Furthermore, departmental policy clearly states that cases involving bullying, learner safety, and victimisation must be treated as urgent and prioritised. It is now 2026, and my child has been without a school for almost a year, despite repeated efforts on my part to engage the Department through the appropriate channels.

I would also like to inform you that my child now resides in Woodstock. In light of this, I respectfully request that she be urgently placed at a school close to the residence, specifically Queens Park High School. Placement at a nearby school would significantly contribute to her safety, emotional recovery, and ability to reintegrate into formal education.

I am reaching out to you as a matter of last resort, requesting your immediate intervention to ensure that my child’s constitutional rights are restored without further delay. This matter requires urgent attention, as every additional day out of school further compounds the harm already suffered.

I trust that you will treat this matter with the seriousness it warrants and take the necessary steps to ensure that my child is placed in a suitable school as a matter of urgency.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Mothers name: Aneesah Davids Your Contact Number: 0817509578 Child’s Name and Grade : Shanur Davids Grade 10

Childs ID number : 08060604****4