By: Benida Phillips
With a limited number of schools and educators for children with special needs in the Northern Cape, the father of a wheelchair-bound Grade 4 learner from Barkly West fears that his child will lose out on securing an education.
This is due to a shortage of caregivers at the hostel at Elizabeth Conradie (Elcon) School and a lack of transport to the school.
According to the father of the child, Alfred Palm, his son Ayden has been missing out on school for the past eight months because travelling from Barkly West to Kimberley every day in order for him to attend school has become financially crippling. Palm is unemployed.
“I have been transporting Ayden to school in my car and I am unable to work as Ayden needs care and assistance 24 hours a day. We have to wake up very early each day to make our way to Kimberley and then I have to drive back to Barkly West after school,” Palm said
He said he has, in the past, requested to have his son placed in the hostel on a full-time basis and also asked if he could stay with with his son as he requires 24-hour care.
He said that his request was denied by the school and he has been sent from pillar to post by officials at the Northern Cape Department of Education.
"The request was denied by the school and I went to the department, but have since not had any positive response. The only feedback I got was that they are looking into the matter”. Palm added that he is worried about his son as he has not only been missing out on school, but also the opportunity to socialise with his peers.
“He was born with a disability and now understands that he cannot do most things children his age can easily do. We are taught and encouraged to treat children with disabilities with the same respect and dignity as that of all other people or children. How come my child has to fight just to get an education?”
He said it appears as if the department is not aware that not all children with special needs require the same treatment.
“There are not many schools for children with special needs in the Province. The special schools are mostly found in Kimberley. There is not even a bus to transport children from other parts of the Province. The public transport system does not make provision for people in wheelchairs. The children in wheelchairs are also not assisted by the drivers of taxis and buses. The children have to fend for themselves.
“Plus, there are not many educators or caretakers to look after the children once they are in a hostel. How does one leave your wheelchair-bound child in a hostel where there is no staff to look after your child? Some children are bedridden, but still need access to education. The needs of those children are not considered,” he said.
Northern Cape Department of Education spokesperson Sydney Stander said they have knowledge of the matter and will call a meeting with Palm to resolve it.
“We have in the past looked at various options of accommodating the child and the parent at Elcon to mitigate the challenges raised by the parent. The child requires full-time caregivers and the school does not, at this moment, have a full complement of specialised staff. The child has special fragile needs and needs a professional caregiver who must be available 24 hours a day.
“We will convene an urgent meeting with the parent and the school governing body (SGB) and the school management teams (SMT) of Elcon and the project manager of the Presidential Youth Employment Initiative (PYEI) to look at the possibility of bringing in youth care assistants to assist. This will give the child an opportunity to join the rest of his peers,” Stander said.
He added that the department supports the law that all children, despite their mental or physical state, should have access to education.
“The fact is that children with special education needs vary from one child to another, depending on the degree of the disability. Therefore, special attention needs to be paid when dealing with admissions to special schools. Not all special schools can fully provide for all special needs, hence each child is assessed to determine the degree of educational needs,” he said.
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