Two matric pupils who faced missing their final school examinations after being excluded from a Johannesburg private school over unpaid fees have been granted interim relief by the court.
Johannesburg high court acting judge Apfeswaho Vele on Tuesday ordered that the pupils be allowed back into class immediately while a legal battle between their mother and the school continues.
The urgent application was brought by the mother after the school excluded her three children because of outstanding school fees. Two of the children are in Grade 12 and the third is in Grade 4.
In an interim order, pending the final outcome of the case by the mother regarding fees, Vele directed the school re-admit the two Grade 12 pupils “with immediate effect” and allow them to “attend classes, write assessments and participate in all ordinary school activities”.
The court also ordered the school to provide the mother with an invoice for the matric examination registration fees and related costs within 48 hours.
Once those fees have been paid, the school must register the pupils or take all necessary steps to ensure their registration for the 2026 Independent Examinations Board (IEB) examinations, including the mid-year, preliminary and final National Senior Certificate (NSC) examinations.
The court further directed the IEB to accept and process the pupils’ registrations, even if normal registration deadlines have passed, and to allow them to sit the examinations.
There was no order as to costs.
The case centres on a long-running dispute over unpaid school fees.
The mother, represented by Section27, argued that while the school had the right to recover money owed to it, it could not do so in a manner that infringed on her children’s constitutional right to basic education.
Court papers state that the pupils had attended the school for several years and that the school did not accuse them of poor academic performance, misconduct or disciplinary problems.
Two are in Grade 12. They stand on the threshold of completing their school education. The third is a young child of compulsory school-going age. None bears responsibility for the debt that lies at the heart of this dispute. Yet each has become its principal victim.
— Court application
“The respondents do not contend that the children are academically unqualified, disruptive or unsuitable to remain at school. Their exclusion rests on one ground alone: their mother has fallen into arrears with school fees.”
According to the application, the children had previously been excluded when fees were outstanding and later allowed back after payments were made.
The mother argued that the school continued treating the pupils as enrolled for the 2026 academic year by sending timetables, discussing subject choices and inviting them to school activities before later excluding them.
The application highlighted the impact the exclusion could have on the two matric pupils.
“This case concerns three children,” the papers stated.
“Two are in Grade 12. They stand on the threshold of completing their school education. The third is a young child of compulsory school-going age. None bears responsibility for the debt that lies at the heart of this dispute. Yet each has become its principal victim.”
The mother argued that the children should not be deprived of their education because of a dispute over school fees and that the school had other legal avenues available to recover the money owed.
“The respondents are entitled to recover what is lawfully owed to them. They are not entitled to do so at the expense of the children’s constitutional rights.”
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