Cape Town Municipality Assists 200 Early Childhood Centres Towards Registration

City initiative aims to help facilities qualify for R24 daily subsidy by navigating compliance requirements.

The City of Cape Town reported that more than 200 Early Childhood Development centres have been assisted towards regulatory compliance in the past six months, a requirement for facilities seeking to register with the Western Cape Education Department and access government funding.¹²

Early Childhood Development centres must complete registration before they can apply for the national subsidy of R24 per child per day.¹² Many centres do not meet registration requirements and consequently cannot access the subsidy.¹²

Francine Higham, the City's Mayoral Committee member for community services and health, said the municipality's role is to help centres navigate the registration process, remove obstacles where possible, and provide guidance and support needed to move centres towards compliance.¹²

The City described compliance as a critical step in enabling facilities to operate legally and meet safety standards before registering with the provincial education department.¹²

In August of the previous year, the City hosted an Early Childhood Development Indaba where problems with red tape and the registration process were discussed.²

The Centre for Early Childhood Development characterised the results of the City's efforts as promising.¹²