The City’s Social Development and Early Childhood Development Department is moving online, meaning an easier process for ECDs on their journey to compliance and ultimately, registration.
Only 30% of centres in the City are registered, which leaves more than 2 000 unregistered.
Early childhood development is recognised as the foundation for success in future learning. Quality early learning programmes prepare children for adulthood, providing them with the necessary opportunities for social, cognitive, spiritual, physical and emotional development. These programmes assist in laying the foundation for holistic development, while cultivating a love for lifelong learning.
There are many challenges facing the ECD sector, notwithstanding the progress made in early childhood development since 1994. Children in South Africa still face significant challenges which include infrastructure, nutrition, ECD teachers, institutional capacity and funding.
The City of Cape Town will process ECD compliance applications online in future, making it easier for centres to comply with regulations.
The online tool that has been developed will see staff members uploading all of an applicant’s information in a single visit to their local Social Development and Early Childhood Development office.
From there, the relevant inspections for fire safety and health compliance, as well as compliance with building regulations, will be coordinated. Applicants will be kept abreast of developments via SMS and email.
We are constantly looking at how we can improve the customer experience, and this online system certainly checks all of the boxes. It has become apparent over the years that compliance is a bridge too far for many unregistered ECDs, including the onerous task of going about the various steps required. Our Social Development and Early Childhood Development Department has worked hard to close the gap, and hopefully this technological advancement will see more unregistered ECDs apply to change their status.
This interface will streamline the process for ECD centre registration and enable the centres to access critically needed funding, food support and administrative support.
ECDs are more than a day care, and it is important that we increase access to registered centres for young children across the city. The case for Early Childhood Centres is clear, and the benefits show later in life where children who went to an ECD perform better at school, are healthier, make better decisions for themselves, are more likely to finish high school, among other things.
Access to a registered, well-staffed, well-resourced ECD is about redress. It is about equality. It is about giving those not only in privileged communities the access to foundational learning, but especially to those in disadvantaged communities where access to these resources fundamentally affects the life path of a child.
These centres are not only safe spaces, they also provide the foundation of education and learning. They lay the groundwork for formal schooling, social interaction, physical development and emotional growth for our youngest learners. While the City assists centres with educational training, legislative compliance, and support, the centres must be registered with the Western Cape Department of Social Development. The process we launched today will help centres become compliant.
To achieve our goals, the department will address three key areas. These include reducing the turnaround time to register an ECD facility, improve customer service and improve safety and environmental health at centres. Apart from an improvement in turnaround time, other benefits are the centralised storage of all documentation electronically and real time access to information by City officials.
The department also conducts regular surveys on registered and unregistered centres, constructs ECD facilities that meet all the requirements and offers training and capacity building with ECD practitioners, caregivers and parents.
For further information, or to confirm all the requirements for an ECD to be registered, please email SocialDevelopment@capetown.gov.za
Area offices can be visited at the following addresses:
| Area North | 1st Floor, Bloemhof Building, 112 Edward Street, Bellville |
| Area East | 94 Van Riebeeck Street 1st Floor Omniforum Building, Kuilsriver |
| Area Central | Unit 201, Block 2, De Tijger Office Park, Hanners Louw Drive, Parow |
| Area South | 3rd Floor, 200 on Main Road, Claremont |