KZN ECD centres take Education Department to court over 'unlawful' subsidy delays

The Legal Resources Centre will be acting on behalf of the Friends of South Africa ECD Forum and the KZN ECD Alliance, for the second stage of litigation concerning the non-payment of ECD subsidies across KwaZulu-Natal.

More than 1,000 Early Childhood Development (ECD) practitioners are expected to gather outside the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Tuesday when they apply for the KwaZulu-Natal Education Department’s “irregular, inconsistent and delayed” payment of subsidies to be declared unlawful and unconstitutional.

The Legal Resources Centre will be acting on behalf of the Friends of South Africa ECD Forum and the KZN ECD Alliance for the second stage of litigation concerning the non-payment of ECD subsidies across KwaZulu-Natal.

They will ask the court to affirm that access to early childhood development is a constitutionally protected right.

It also comes after months of unresolved disputes between centres and the department, despite repeated attempts to secure clarity and payment of arrears.