What do I need to know as a teacher or coach running sport for Grade R-12 learners at a public school? Away fixtures and tours, approval, supervision ratios, consent, transport, medical needs, water safety, alcohol, punishment and initiation.
Yes, at public schools. The Regulations for Safety Measures at Public Schools (GN 1040 of 2001, amended by GN R.1128 of 10 November 2006 to cover school tours and sporting activities) apply to all public schools in South Africa. They define a school activity as any educational, cultural, sporting or social activity of the school, on or off the school premises. That includes practices, home and away fixtures, festivals and tours.
The South African Schools Act (as amended by the BELA Act, 2024) uses a similar definition: any official educational, cultural, recreational or social activity of the school, within or outside the school premises.
For school sport, the key rules cover:
Independent schools have separate regulations (GN 975 of 2004), so these answers apply to public schools only.
If the activity involves transporting learners, regulation 8A(1) of the Regulations for Safety Measures at Public Schools requires the school to:
What the Schedule 1 form asks for
It is signed by the principal and the governing body chairperson, then approved or refused by the Head of the provincial education department or a delegate.
Regulation 8A(2) of the Regulations for Safety Measures at Public Schools sets these minimums for any school activity:
| School | Minimum ratio |
|---|---|
| Primary school | 1 educator, parent or other adult for every 20 learners |
| Secondary school | 1 educator, parent or other adult for every 30 learners |
The school must also:
The regulation sets these as minimums ("at least"), so a school can use more adults.
Regulation 8B(1) of the Regulations for Safety Measures at Public Schools says the school must give the parent of each learner going on the activity, in writing:
Under regulation 8C of the Regulations for Safety Measures at Public Schools:
So a consent form is required, but a clause in it waiving the school's liability is not allowed.
Regulation 8A(7) of the Regulations for Safety Measures at Public Schools requires the school to make sure that:
If medical treatment is needed (regulation 8A(8)), the supervising educator must:
Report on return (regulation 8B(2)-(4)): immediately after the activity, the supervising educator must submit a report to the principal if there was any accident, any injury to a learner, educator, driver or anyone else, or any misconduct by a learner, educator, driver or anyone else. The report must cover:
The principal sends the report to the departmental official who approved the activity and to the chairperson of the school governing body.
Claims (regulation 8A(2)-(6)): the school must take out insurance against accidents, injuries, medical expenses, hospitalisation and theft, depending on available funds. It must help the parent claim from the insurer, from the Road Accident Fund where it is liable, or from the state under section 60 of the Schools Act. An insurer may not rely on section 60 to avoid paying.
Regulation 8D of the Regulations for Safety Measures at Public Schools requires the school to ensure that:
School-owned vehicles
Hired transport (the company or owner must give the school):
Every vehicle carrying learners must have a fire extinguisher.
During the trip
Where transport is involved, the trip also needs prior approval from the provincial education department on the Schedule 1 form.
Under regulation 8E(1) of the Regulations for Safety Measures at Public Schools, no learner may be allowed to take part in physical activities, including sports, games or gymnastics, if:
Parents are also advised to tell the school in writing about a learner's medical condition, so the school can act on it.
Regulation 8E of the Regulations for Safety Measures at Public Schools requires the principal to ensure that:
The general rules for school activities also apply: written parental consent, the minimum adult-to-learner ratio, and departmental approval if transport is involved.
Not during a school activity. Regulation 4(4) of the Regulations for Safety Measures at Public Schools (as amended in 2006) says no educator, parent, learner or any other person may possess or use any of the following during any school activity, which includes school sport at home or away:
Also under the regulations:
No. Section 10 of the South African Schools Act (as amended by the BELA Act, in force from 24 December 2024) abolishes corporal punishment: no person may inflict it on a learner at a school, during a school activity, or in a school hostel. That covers teachers, outside coaches, parents and other volunteers.
The Act's definition of corporal punishment is wide. It includes any deliberate act that causes pain or physical discomfort, however light, to punish or contain a child, such as:
Penalty: it is a criminal offence, punishable by a fine, imprisonment or both, as the court decides.
No. Section 10A of the South African Schools Act (as amended by the BELA Act in 2024) says no person may conduct or take part in initiation practices against a learner at a school, during a school activity (any official educational, cultural, recreational or social activity of the school, on or off the premises), or in a school hostel.
What counts as an initiation practice: any act done as part of initiation, admission into, affiliation with, or as a condition of staying in a school, group, extramural activity or interschools sports team, which:
Consequences
No. Under section 41(7) of the South African Schools Act, a learner may not be deprived of the right to take part in all aspects of the school's programme because a parent has not paid school fees, and may not be victimised in any way.
The Act specifically lists denying access to the cultural, sporting or social activities of the school as prohibited victimisation, alongside suspension from classes, verbal or non-verbal abuse, and withholding a report or transfer certificate.
The school can pursue the parent for fees through the steps the Act allows, but not by excluding the learner from sport.