Chiloane says despite GDE's best efforts Gauteng schools not able to meet demand for placements

Gauteng Education MEC Matome Chiloane says the province continues to face immense pressure on school placements, with more than 40,000 applications exceeding available capacity across both primary and secondary schools for the 2026 academic year. 

Speaking during a media briefing on Sunday, Chiloane revealed that 266 primary schools and 202 secondary schools were currently over-subscribed, with some receiving more than five times their available capacity.

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Langenhoven High School in Pretoria is one of the most sought-after schools, with at least 3,000 applications received for 210 available spots.
 
Chiloane said that despite the department's efforts to expand capacity, many schools simply cannot meet the demand at this stage. 

"We've been accused of closing libraries to create classrooms, so we made sure that every space available that we can find, we opened up, we put in chairs, we put in desks, we put a teacher in front of them. But when we say this is the capacity, it is the capacity. Once a school reaches its full capacity, we are not going to stretch it."