In the transition to the new Child Care Subsidy regime, Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) services may consider different session types or models to better meet the needs of their families under the new regime (whilst not obligated to do so).
ECEC Services In South Africa
If you live in South Africa with children, there’s a range of educational childcare options to consider. A list of pre-schools and childcare centers within South Africa is included in this guide.
If you’re a working parent in South Africa, there is a good range of childcare options and pre-schools in South Africa available. This comprehensive guide tells you everything you need to know including how to enroll your child in pre-school, requirements for pre-grade R and Grade R pupils, what’s on the Grade R curriculum, together with costs you can expect to pay for preschools and daycare facilities.
The South African constitution states that “everyone has the right to a basic education.” The government has invested heavily in preschool and childcare centers to ensure a child’s education starts in early childhood development.
Subsequently, preschools in South Africa provide a Grade R curriculum recognized by the governments Early Childhood Development (ECD) program. It is the general consensus that successful early childhood development is an effort between parents, the community and the government.
The primary goal of the ECD program is to protect children’s rights to an education and develop their emotional, social and physical potential. The ECD program utilizes different learning processes, enabling children to learn about the environment and themselves.
Children’s rights and the ECD program
The rights of young South African children (ages 0-3) are expansive and include:
protection from physical danger
adequate nutrition and healthcare
appropriate immunizations
an adult with whom to form an attachment
an adult who can understand and respond to their signals
things to look at, touch, hear, smell, taste
opportunities to explore their world
appropriate language stimulation
support in developing their motor neurons, language and thinking skills
a chance to develop some independence
help in learning how to control their behaviour
opportunities to begin to learn to care for themselves
daily opportunities to play with a variety of educational objects
When your child enters pre-school aged 3 or 4, their skills develop even further and include:
Opportunities to develop motor skills
encouragement of language through talking, being read to, and singing
activities that will develop a sense of mastery
experimentation with pre-writing and pre-reading skills
hands-on exploration for learning through action
opportunities for taking responsibility and making choices to develop a full cognitive, emotional, social and physical potential
How much does daycare cost in South Africa?
Childcare centers in South Africa typically open at 06.30 and can look after your child for up to 12 hours. Expect to pay fees of around R1500 to R4500 a month depending on where you live. Pre-schools in South Africa provide full day education, half-day or three-quarter day.
What services are available for ECD services?
These include in-center services (Partial Care facilities) and out-of-center programmes and services that include home visiting programmes, playgroups, toy libraries and space-based ECD programmes.
How many ECD Centres are there in South Africa?
In 2017/2018, the Centre for Early Childhood Development worked in six provinces across South Africa. We reached and supported 657 early childhood development (ECD) centres, 19 non-profit organizations, seven playgroups, 12 ECD forums, nine primary schools and 138 families and their young children.
What is the state of ECD in South Africa?
The state of early childhood development education in South Africa is largely informal and at times totally unregulated. For many parents, the core goal of an early childhood development center or preschool is to keep their children occupied for most of the day.