Robber alert as 500,000 requests in under a week made for Gauteng school placements

Parents seeking placements for their children at Gauteng schools in 2025 are quick off the mark this year — and so is a criminal posing as a dad.

Education MEC Matome Chiloane on Wednesday gave an “exceptional” score to the response to the online admissions application process, saying: “The phenomenal number of applications we've received demonstrates the trust parents place in our education system.”

Six days since the system's launch, 512,237 applications have been recorded: 214,843 for grade 1 and 297,394 for grade 8.

Parents who cannot apply online are being helped at public schools in the area and the department's 80 decentralised walk-in centres.

A criminal saw an opportunity in the process to target Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres in Daveyton, Ekurhuleni and parts of Sedibeng.

“The man has been seen travelling with two children, moving from one ECD centre to another, posing as a parent looking for placement.

“It is alleged this man proceeds to rob ECD staff of their cellphones and valuables while pretending to apply for the children he’s with,” Chiloane said.

His vehicle is a red Toyota Etios with the registration number FZ19LV GP, the MEC said. “We urge the public and ECD centres to be vigilant and report this individual to law enforcement agencies for action.”

The admissions application window is open until August 12 but Chiloane urged those who have not yet applied and those who have only partly completed the five-step application process to do so soon.

He said the department had identified more than 12,000 parents who have not completed the full process.

Applicants who have submitted complete applications can expect to receive offers of placement from September 16.

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