The Department of Basic Education and provincial departments must complete employee vetting against the National Child Protection Register by 31 March 2027 following a court-approved settlement.
The implementation of the National Child Protection Register (NCPR) is set to be strengthened after a Gauteng High Court settlement agreement ordered education authorities to improve vetting processes and ensure people deemed unsuitable to work with children are identified and recorded.
The settlement agreement, which has been made an order of court, requires the Department of Basic Education (DBE) and provincial education departments to strengthen compliance with the NCPR following concerns over failures in ensuring that individuals found guilty of sexual misconduct or otherwise deemed unsuitable to work with children were promptly placed on Part B of the register.
The matter was brought by the Teddy Bear Foundation (TBF), represented by SECTION27, which raised concerns over systemic failures in the implementation of the register.
The organisations argued that these failures allowed some individuals to avoid proper vetting processes, placing children at unnecessary risk.
