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Gauteng Parents Panic as 40 000 Children Still Have No School for 2026
When home becomes uncertain: parents waiting, worrying
In classrooms across Gauteng, the mood should be shifting from pencils and new shoes to summer break. Instead, countless parents are still anxiously checking their phones or refreshing the admissions portal, waiting to learn where their children will start school in 2026.
That frustration comes after the annual placement cycle stalled well past the usual timeframe. For many families, it is no small thing: a school placement can determine how far a child travels, whether they attend a fee-paying school, or even whether they board somewhere at all.
The numbers behind the delay
The Gauteng Department of Education says that out of 358,574 applicants for Grade 1 and Grade 8, exactly 317,988 learners have been placed. That leaves 40,586 children still waiting. Among them are 25,056 who should start high school next year.
By the department’s own breakdown, around 91.2 percent of Grade 1 applicants and 86.5 percent of Grade 8 applicants have secured a spot.
Growing anxiety as parents speak out
On social media platforms dedicated to admissions updates, parents are sounding the alarm. One wrote that their child has been assigned to a school they have never heard of. Another cannot even find the school’s name on maps. Some wonder whether the new institution is fee-paying. Others are worried that distance will complicate transport and safety.
Many are calling on the GDE for clarity and finalisation before the academic year begins. Opposition parties argue that the number of children still unplaced shows the system lacks transparency and leaves families in unnecessary distress.
What the department says and what comes next
Gauteng MEC for Education Matome Chiloane has stated that the department is working tirelessly to secure placements for all remaining pupils before the academic year. The GDE notes that parents who receive an offer should accept it. If no better offer arrives within seven days, the placement becomes final.
Parents who are unhappy with a placement can decline it electronically and submit an objection. That outcome will be communicated within two weeks, with appeals taking an extra 14 to 21 days.
Placement priority is based on home or work address relative to a school’s feeder zone, whether siblings are enrolled there, and then distance beyond 30 km if needed. When all options in an area are full, a child will be offered the next closest school with available space.
Late applications will open for families who missed the official window or still need a school, although spaces at popular schools are already limited.
Why this matters, especially now
For many families in Johannesburg and the wider Gauteng region, school placement is more than a line in an SMS. It shapes daily life. It affects the morning commute, after-school arrangements, affordability, friendships and the overall well-being of a learner settling into a new phase of schooling.
Uncertainty this close to the new year adds real pressure to household planning. Working parents need to make transport arrangements, employers expect reliable schedules, and learners deserve to feel excited rather than anxious as January approaches.
What might help going forward
A placement system only feels fair when parents feel informed. Clearer communication, public updates on available school capacity, and transparency around timelines could help reduce panic. Expanding infrastructure in high-demand areas and involving parent bodies more meaningfully could also make the process smoother in future.
Right now, though, thousands of families are simply waiting, hoping that the school year will begin with certainty rather than confusion.
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Source: newsday.co.za
Featured Image: TeachHUB
