The Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) Bill was recently accredited with the South African Parliament and it is now just ready to generally be signed into law by the President.

The Act will introduce sizeable changes to your South African Schools Act along with the Employment of Educators Act to better align with contemporary academic needs and issues.

Vital provisions from the BELA Bill include things like:

Compulsory Grade R: The Bill makes it necessary for kids to start out school at Grade R, with official penalties for folks who are unsuccessful to enroll their children​​.

Corporal Punishment: The Bill reinforces the ban on corporal punishment and prohibits other types of punishment which could belittle learners​.

Language Policy: School governing bodies (SGBs) will continue to determine the language policy of schools, but these policies must be approved by the head of the education department. This aims to ensure that language policies click here do not discriminate and are inclusive.

Learner Pregnancy: Contrary to some public misconceptions, the Bill does not give schools control over a learner’s decision regarding abortion. It does, however, address the management of learner pregnancies in schools​.