Child Justice Bill
IMPLEMENTING EDUCATION
WHITE PAPER 6
“Presentation to Education Portfolio
Committee”
Content
• Current law relating to different categories
of provision
• Current Situation concerning existing
provision
• Response of the Department of Education
• DOE Plans and Activities
• Major Challenges
Content cont.
• Substantive Issues related to Bill
• Recommendations
Schools Industry
• Current Law
Schools of Industry: Children can be placed
in a School of Industry by a Children’s
Court in terms of the Child Care Act. SOIs
are intended for children in need of care
who have behavioural difficulties. Children
cannot be sentenced to a SOI
Reform Schools
• Reform Schools : Children can be sentenced
to Reform School by a Criminal Court in
terms of the Criminal Procedure Act. It used
to be possible for children to be transferred
from a SOI to a RS, Child Care Act
amended to prevent this in 1999.
Current Situation:Numbers
• Current situation
:3 Reform Schools in the country, two of
which are in the Western Cape.
16 Schools of Industry
• The Child Justice system requires a far
more evenly spread access to facilities.
Mpumulanga
Has more than adequate facilities for the province,
does take children from other provinces
3 schools of industry (2 for boys,
one for girls)
1 reform school (for boys)
Kwa-Zulu Natal
Has adequate schools of industry, but no reform
school.
SOI – Newcastle (only boys)
SOI – Estcourt (only girls)
SOI – Utrecht (very young children both sexes,
more like a full service special school)
Facilities clustered in one area, away from densely
populated areas. This province has highest no. of
children in prison.
Gauteng
Has adequate schools of industry but no
reform school
Two schools of industry, both for boys, in
Heidelberg.
Free State
Has adequate SOI, but no Reform School
1 SOI for girls in Bloemfontein
1 SOI for boys in Dewetsdorp
Eastern Cape
Low capacity
Only one school of industry for boys in
Queenstown.
No reform school, no facilities for girls.
This province has second highest no. of
children in prison.
North West Province
Only one school of industry for girls in
Wolmaransstad.
No facility for boys.
No reform school.
Northern Cape and Limpopo
No schools of industry or reform schools in
either of these provinces.
Sentenced children - from Western Cape,
are accommodated in Western Cape
from all other provinces, accommodated in
Mpumulanga.
Response of Department of
Education
• The Director-General has forwarded a
request to all provincial heads of education
requesting information on un-used buildings
that could be utilised for housing awaiting
trial and sentenced learners
• Department of Education has met with
Social Development, Justice, Correctional
Response contd.
• Services with a view to developing a
operational plan that will indicate the role of
each department, budgets to be allocated
and other operational issues
• Department of Education is convening a
meeting together with the EDTP Sita,
universities, other service providers
Response contd.
• Regarding human resource development in
this area.
• Look at the possibility of using 16 youth
care centres for awaiting trial and sentenced
learners
• In the short term we will field test the
possibility of conversion
DOE Plans and activities for
2003
• Develop educational programs for awaiting
trial and sentenced learners
• Work closely with higher education so that
these programs are part of their teacher
training
• Work with social development in field
testing to of youth care centres
Directorate Plans and Activities
• Characterise the different kinds of learners
who are target in the Children’s Bill and
indicate the different levels of support
• Plan intervention and field testing on the
basis of the different levels of support
• Create the necessary systems that need to be
put in place immediately
Plans and activities contd.
• DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION has to
ensure initially that there are facilities
• This will have to be done with other
government departments
• Child Justice Bill places a lot of emphasis
on education’s role but Social Development
suggests taking over all youth care centres
in the Children’s Bill
Plans and activities contd.
• We have met a few times after the hearings
on the Child Justice Bill
• Education is centrally involved in the
Children’s Bill
• All these matters will be resolved since all
departments are currently involved in
working out their responsibilities
Plans and activities contd.
• Department is moving ahead with looking
at educational programmes at facilities at
this stage.
• Facilitating the collaboration between
departments so that all these matters could
be resolved and solutions found
Major challenges
• Need to look at the common ground
between Child Justice Bill and Childrens
Bill (Chapt 16 of childrens bill youth care
• To ensure different govt depts(name) and
national and provincial level develop clear
and concrete plans regarding their
involvement
Substantive issues central to Bill
• The Bill has increased the age of lack of criminal
capacity from 7 to 10yrs (Clause 5(1) of the Bill).
• It has also increased the age of the presumption of
lack of criminal liability to 14 years (Clause 5(2)
of the Bill).
• By doing so the bill amends the common law
pertaining to criminal capacity of children
Substantive issues related to Bill
contd.
• The increased age of lack of criminal
capacity is good news for education in that
a learner will be able to attend school
continuously up to Grade 5 without any
interruption
• The mere fact that a child will note be
arrested and kept in police custody for petty
cases such as assault without intent to do
Substantive issues related to bill
contd.
• Grievious bodily harm, as contemplated in
Schedule 1 to the Bill, will allow learners to
be at school without any interruption
(Clause 7(1) of the Bill;
• Sentences such as community based,
restorative justice and correctional
supervision will be in the best interest of a
child because in such instances the child
Substantive issues related to Bill
contd.
• Will be able to attend school (Clauses 6466)
Recommendations
• The terms Constitution and ubuntu should
be defined
• The funding of education in respect of
learners who are under the custody of the
Department of Correctional Services is the
responsibility of that department; and
• The Bill be supported in principle, as it is in
Recommendations contd.
with section 28(1)(g) of the Constitution