WCED introduces safety measures in the provinces schools

By Khanyisa Tabata
15 September 2009

The Western Cape Education Department has decided to introduce a new safety measure in all schools that are deemed high-risk in the province to receive handheld metal detectors.

This initiative by the department will see 110 high-risk schools receiving the detectors to tackle school violence and create a safe learning environment.

The department hopes to tackle the problem of unsafe schools through a three-pronged strategy focusing on the safety of pupils, teachers, support staff and property.

MEC for Education, Donald Grant, launched the project saying the department wanted to maximise the use of physical security measures at schools.

Physical safety measures include metal detectors, safety gates, burglar bars, alarms, perimeter patrols by community volunteers and armed response.

Searches on learners will include a manual or technical search of personal possessions and the items the individual may be carrying. If a person is wearing a coat or jacket they may be requested to remove it.

In a statement Grant said body searches may only be conducted by the principal or his or her delegates, who must be of the same gender as the learner being searched.

He said a learner may be subjected to disciplinary proceedings if any dangerous object has been seized from them.

The department is trying to find a balance between crime control and crime prevention.