The Department of Basic Education is being urged to crackdown and close unregistered schools.

This follows several stories of parents forking out thousands of rands in the expectation that the schools would provide a quality, personal educational service. Instead, they say, it's too late when they discover the schools are in fact not registered with the Department of Education. In a heart wrenching account of their experience, one mother tells her story:

"We enrolled my son who has a learning challenge at a school in Durban North which seemed ideal at first. But from the word go there were inconsistencies, way too much play, very, very little school work," a mother told IOL.

"After term 2 we got a character reference as a report card. That’s when red flags went up! Where was his work? Why is he still battling to read? Promises made from the start of the year were not being met not only in our child’s school work but In the state of the property. The pool has stood black with algae without a safety net for the entire year. The teacher and director also went on strike and refused to speak to the children for one day blaming them for her behaviour.

"These schools make these poor parents think that it's their only option. When you approach a school and meet with an establishment you don’t ever feel the need for them to show you proof of their qualifications or registration. You trust that everything done is completely and wholeheartedly to safeguard children," explained the emotional parent who broke down in tears.

There's been an increase in private education service providers particularly as parents of children with learning challenges seek alternative schools to address their needs. And, their vulnerability and desperation comes at a cost – a whopping R12,000 to R18,000 per term is what parents are forking out for these unregistered schools.

Their experience comes on the back of other experiences from another private education provider which has since become a legal battle with parents taking on a private investigator.

"The bottom line is there are far too many unregistered schools operating without any accountability. The Department of Education cannot say it's just the parents responsibility to ensure these schools are registered. They need to step in and shut down these schools if they are not registered or if it is found they have misrepresented their offerings" private investigator Brad Nathanson told IOL.

He is representing a group of parents who have taken on Keystone Education – a private education service provider which insists it has never claimed to be registered with the Department of Education.

The Department has previously insisted it cannot act if the schools are not registered with them.

IOL