Sentinel Primary School has announced that it was burgled and robbed on the evening of Thursday, October 17.
“It is absolutely heart breaking that members of our community can do that to our schools. We are asking the community to help us find the guilty parties and bring them to task,” the school said in a statement posted to its Facebook page. “The school cannot survive financially much longer. Please… No more! We really need the help of the community. These thugs are robbing YOUR children of a future. Please contact the school if you have any information.”
This is the second burglary and robbery to be reported at the primary school in the past two weeks. On October 10, the school’s ABC For Life offices were broken into.
“They lost ALL of their work built up over the years, as the laptop, computer and hard drive with the back ups were stolen. We are appalled and very disappointed and urge anybody in the community with information to come forward and help us. What a sad day for our community. If this continues, soon we will have no resources left to help our children,” the school said in another Facebook post.
Sentinel Primary school is situated in Hout Bay. It is one of the oldest seaside public-combined schools in the Western Cape and was officially opened in 1969.
The primary school had its humble beginnings in the St. Peter’s Anglican Church in Hout Bay Valley and then moved to a now demolished building in Hangberg under the direction of the first principal, Mr. Richard Manuel.
In 1969 the students and its new principal Mr. Henry Jacobs moved into their new school. Under the management of seven successive principals – R. Manuel, M. Abrahams, H. Jacobs, J. Kruger, C. Jacobs, J. Jansen and the current principal Amanda Engelbrecht – it has flourished into a hub of education for the children of the impoverished settlement of Hangberg.
According to Sentinel Primary School, Hout Bay High School was also struck by robbers on October 17. A request for further information has been sent to South African Police Services (SAPS), as the details of the incident are still unclear.