Nationwide Safe Schools call centres will help keep children safe
18 April 2018
Today, DA Shadow Minister of Basic Education, Ian Ollis MP, DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Basic Education, Nomsa Marchesi MP, and Western Cape Education MEC, Debbie Schafer MPL, visited the Western Cape Education Department’s Safe Schools call centre.
The DA has repeatedly called on the national government to bring together all the relevant departments in an effort to curb violence at schools. The Safe Schools call centre has proved to be successful in doing this and the government must roll it out to all provinces.
The call centre recorded 1034 cases of crime in the 2017/18 financial year, including 27 cases of weapon possession and 214 cases of gang-related shootings and 595 assault cases. There was a 1.6% decrease in crimes reported to the call centre.
The call centre also responds to other concerns involving childrens’ safety including abuse and gang threats, on and off school premises. For example,while the delegation was there, a young learner called in to report an unnatural death she had witnessed.