WATCH | Woodlands school rebuild back on track after years of delays

After years of delays, abandoned construction and millions already spent, Woodlands Primary School is finally set to get the permanent classrooms its more than 1 200 pupils have been waiting for. KwaZulu-Natal Public Works and Infrastructure MEC Martin Meyer on Monday handed over the construction site to a contractor, with the project expected to cost a further R43 094 586. For nearly five decades, generations of pupils have been taught in temporary asbestos classrooms that have become increasingly dilapidated and structurally unsafe.

While the resumption of construction has brought renewed optimism to the school community, pupils will remain in the ageing classrooms until the new facilities are completed. The project involves demolishing the existing asbestos buildings and replacing them with permanent classrooms and other school facilities. Phase one, which has already been completed, included the installation of park-home classrooms to accommodate senior primary pupils while construction takes place.

The remaining phases will include the construction of new senior primary classrooms, a media centre, junior primary and Grade R classrooms, as well as a sports field, parking area, walkways, a gatehouse, boundary wall, refuse area and an attenuation pond. Speaking during the site handover, Meyer acknowledged that pupils had endured unacceptable learning conditions for years.