Horizon View Primary sees opportunity

Horizon View Primary School responded to recent articles during a meeting with the Record on Tuesday 8 October.

The Chairman of the governing body, Palai Segone, met with a Record on behalf of the school to discuss recent reports about the general litter and alleged illegal street vendors outside the school gates.

Recently the Record received more complaints from a concerned resident about the general “lack of control” (as it was referred to) outside the school regarding littering, loud noises and music, illegal street vendors, taxis parking in residential driveways, graffiti and urinating against walls.

One female resident who is a member of the Petunia Residents Committee, alleged in her email that she had no real cooperation from the school, the Department of Education, the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA), Johannesburg Metro Police (JMPD) or the Department of Environmental Health on the matter. She attached a copy of her email to a certain Matlakala Ngapo at the Department of Education, dated 9 September of this year, as proof of being ignored in the matter. To date, the resident’s email hasn’t been responded to.

“The school denies allegations made against it regarding its lack of cooperation with the community,” Segone tells the Record, having pointed out the now clean parking area outside the school gates, free of vendors.

“If you consider the fact that there are 17 bins outside the school property to prevent littering, the fact that the school cuts grass outside its premises despite it being the municipality’s responsibility, the fact that the school maintains a healthy relationship with the JMPD and has worked hard to remove the vendors outside the school, then this cannot be so.”

Although Segone says that the school doesn’t promise “that this won’t happen again”. He believes that both the governing body and school staff are more than willing recipients of constructive criticism that makes it aware of the problems the children and parents face.

“Usually tomorrow and the next day those vendors are back, maybe a metre or two further away from the premises, and we have to face the reality that the school’s power is limited to the premises.

“Only by a combined effort of the school, the community and the parents these issues will be resolved properly.”

Segone told the Record that the school has picked up residential litter being thrown in the outside bins installed for the use of the school children, which would also contribute to the current situation.

“We’ve posted cautionary notices in the school newsletter that goes out, but the truth is that not all children give those letters to their parents and that the parents don’t realise the urgency of the matter, with most of them not living in the immediate area.”

Segone said that he personally but also the school were willing to liaise with the Petunia Residents Committee, the immediate general public, the parents and the stakeholders of the school to resolve the issues.

“If it takes a fully fledged awareness campaign, we are willing to do that.”