Schools in the Western Cape have experienced as decrease in theft and vandalism in the summer holidays. The Western Cape education department (WCED) revealed this week that the number of incidents of burglary and vandalism which occurred at the province’s schools over the 2025/26 summer school holiday period has decreased significantly.There were only 36incidents reported by 32schools.
This is a marked decrease compared to the 47 incidents reported by 34 schools during the 2024/25 summer holidays, the minister of education, David Maynier, said.
He pointed out that the department to subsidised holiday security at 441 schools during the holidays to protect school properties and have worked closely with the South African Police Service (SAPS) and law enforcement to increase vigilance around our schools.
“Nevertheless, this is still 36 incidents too many. Items stolen or damaged during this period range from fencing, electrical cables and plumbing fixtures to kitchen equipment and food for learners. In one particularly alarming incident, over 100 windows at a school were deliberately damaged – an act of senseless criminality.
“Every single item that is damaged or stolen must be replaced, which diverts funding from the core task of educating our learners so that they can get a job or study further when they leave school. Stealing from a school is stealing from a child’s future.
“A watchful school community can thwart even the most dedicated of criminals and vandals, so we urge the public to keep a close eye on their neighbourhood schools and to report any suspicious activity to SAPS or our Safe Schools hotline (0800 45 46 47) immediately.”
Maynier called in the community to provide any information about the incidents that occurred over the school holidays to speak up. “You may hold the key piece of information that will allow SAPS to arrest the perpetrators and recover our schools’ stolen properly.”
