Hout Bay school withdraws controversial letter stating 'no proper school shoes, no exam'

The GOOD party has called for Sentinel primary school in Hout Bay, Cape Town, to act urgently after it stated in a letter pupils without “proper” school shoes would not be allowed to write exams.

GOOD secretary-general Brett Herron said in a statement the letter is “cruel, humiliating and unconstitutional”.

The letter, which was cosigned by the acting principal and student governing body (SGB) chairperson and written on Thursday, lists the names of seven pupils who have to have proper schools before the exams, saying, “if not the learner will not be allowed to write exams”.

“The powers of school governing bodies to deny children access to education on the basis of language, culture or social class must be curtailed. In Hout Bay, a governing body wants to exclude children who can’t afford shoes,” said Herron.

“That the chairperson of the Sentinel primary school governing body was willing to co-sign a bullying and unconstitutional letter is indicative of the need for guard rails to curb the autonomy of governing bodies that oppose universal access to education.

“If children without 'proper shoes' are denied education what chance do they have of escaping the cycle of poverty and being able to one day afford shoes for their children?”

Western Cape education department (WCED) spokesperson Bronagh Hammond said the department is aware of the letter that was distributed to a number of grade 3 parents.

“The letter was not sent to all the parents of the school, only those parents whose learners are named in the letter. The contents of the letter are, however, concerning. While learners must adhere to the uniform policy in the school’s code of conduct, they cannot be prevented from participating in classroom activities, examinations and, in this case, assessments,” said Hammond.

“The WCED has addressed the matter with the school management. The school has retracted the letter and written an apology letter to the parents concerned. They will also be meeting the parents on Monday to discuss the matter further.” 

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