Maile condemns burning of school furniture at overcrowded Eastbank High

Gauteng Education MEC Lebogang Maile has condemned the burning of school furniture at Eastbank High School in Alexandra, after a fire on Tuesday, 11 August destroyed classroom items and disrupted teaching and learning.

What happened

The Gauteng department of education said four desks and two chairs were destroyed in a fire on the school premises on Tuesday, 11 August. A case of malicious property damage has been opened at the Alexandra police station and the school will institute disciplinary proceedings against pupils identified in connection with the incident.

“We are deeply disappointed and disturbed by what happened at Eastbank High School. There is absolutely no excuse for burning education infrastructure, learning materials or furniture,” Maile said.

Capacity and furniture shortages

Eastbank High was built for about 1 200 pupils but currently has 2 063 pupils, the department said 863 above capacity. The department described this as the school accommodating about 72% more pupils than its infrastructure was designed to handle.

The school has reported a shortage of about 1 200 desks and 600 chairs. The department said it delivered 1 000 chairs and 150 desks to the school during 2026 a total of 1 150 pieces of furniture but that significant shortages remain. Maile warned that the destruction of even a small number of desks and chairs was unacceptable given these pressures.

Maintenance and vandalism

The department addressed reports that pupils burned furniture because classrooms were cold due to broken windows, saying all windows had been repaired the previous year and the school started the 2026 academic year without broken windows. It said the school has since reported that about 60 windows now require repairs following recent pupil damage.

The department said extensive repairs to doors were completed about three months ago but that eight doors currently need further repairs. Maile warned that repeated vandalism was placing additional pressure on the province’s limited education budget and called on School Governing Bodies to strengthen financial management and prioritise routine maintenance that falls within their responsibilities.

Response and next steps

The department said it would continue working with the school and the SGB to address furniture shortages, maintenance challenges and capacity pressures. It also said it would cooperate with the police over the malicious-damage-to-property case and support disciplinary proceedings against pupils implicated in the incident.

The department said counselling and support structures had been activated following the death of a popular teacher and that Maile extended his condolences to the teacher’s family, colleagues and the wider school community.

“We understand that pupils are grieving. We understand the pain associated with losing a teacher who played such an important role in their lives. We will support them through that grief. But grief cannot become a licence to destroy,” he said.