CHSA safety measures for students
Christel House puts stringent safety measures in place for return of students
Christel House South Africa, a non-profit school which provides 100% scholarships to students from some of the poorest communities on the Cape Flats, welcomed its Grade 7’s and 12’s back to school on Monday, 1 June, with stringent safety measures in place.
Based in Ottery, Cape Town, Christel House SA has heeded the call of the Department of Education to re-open its doors to its 60 Grade 7s and 47 Grade 12 students and has done so under strict hygiene and safety protocols. The entire school was sanitised before students arrived and plans were put in place well in advance for the reopening of the school. On the first day back to school, students received masks and pre-packaged meals; temperature testing and screening took place; classrooms, buses and toilets were sanitised; and students received a full brief on safety and social distancing rules.
The school does not only offer free, quality education but also provides a safe haven for students. Christel House SA provides various poverty mitigation services, including daily transport to school and back, nutritious meals and professional health care with two full-time nurses and a clinic on site, as well as social workers and counsellors should they require assistance.
“I am happy to be back and see my friends. I was also having difficulties with studying at home, whereas at school we have a different environment. I can concentrate better here,” says Jabulile K., a Grade 12 student at Christel House South Africa
Students who are in other grades will continue to follow the academic curriculum from home. Junior School students use workbooks, help from parents and bits of content shared by teachers via WhatsApp, whilst High School students make use of donated tablets, which are loaded with weekly data bundles.
MORE ABOUT CHRISTEL HOUSE
Christel House South Africa is a non-profit school with a single mission: to break the cycle of poverty. It offers no-fee scholarships to students from some of Cape Town’s poorest neighbourhoods and support them for 18 years (Grade R to Grade 12 and five years post matric) through character-based and career-focused education. The school’s beneficiaries include 750 students from grade R to 12, 250+ post-matric students and more than 3000 parents and other members of the communities it serves.
The main criterion for admission to Christel House is not evidence of talent – but evidence of poverty, one measure of which is a maximum average income of R1,500 per household member per month. Key aspects of Christel House’s model include poverty mitigation services in the form of daily transport to school and back, professional health care, nutritious meals, psychosocial counselling, family assistance and college and careers planning and support.
The school is justifiably proud of its 99% matric pass rate since inception and that 93% of its alumni are studying, working or both. In doing so, Christel House transforms the lives of its students and help to build self-sufficient, contributing members of society.