In February 2025 the high court addressed the issue of school safety and negligence in a case involving a student who sustained injuries during netball practice. The court determined that the school, represented by the MEC for the Department of Education, Limpopo, breached its duty of care by failing to ensure the safety of its students.

The claimant was injured on 30 July 2015 while practising netball at her school. The claimant alleged that the school was negligent in failing to maintain a safe environment for the students and that this negligence led to her injury. The claimant sustained her injuries when she slipped and fell on the netball court, resulting in a fracture of her right arm. She testified that the netball court was uneven, with patches of grass and stones, and had not been cleaned or maintained properly. The claimant also stated that there was no supervision during the practice, which contributed to the unsafe conditions.

The primary legal issues in this case were whether the school breached its duty of care by failing to ensure the safety of its students and whether the school’s actions constituted negligence. The court had to determine if the school’s failure to maintain a safe environment and supervise the students adequately was the factual cause of the claimant’s injury.

The court found that the school had a duty to ensure the safety of its students during netball practice and that this duty included maintaining the netball field and providing adequate supervision.

The court examined the evidence presented by both parties, including the testimonies of the claimant, her teammates, and the school’s staff. The claimant argued that the school failed to inspect and clean the netball field, which led to her injury. The school’s staff testified that they had cleaned the field on the morning of the incident, but the court found inconsistencies in their testimonies and concluded that the school had not taken reasonable steps to ensure the field was safe.

The evidence showed that the students were allowed to practise netball without adequate supervision, and the court found that this lack of supervision contributed to the claimant’s injury. If the teacher had been present at the time that the claimant and her teammates arrived at the netball ground, they would have cleaned the netball ground first (and levelled the playing field) before they started playing, as testified by the claimant and her teammate, which was not the case on the day of the incident. The court emphasised that the school had a responsibility to provide proper supervision during sports activities to prevent accidents and injuries.

The court found the defendant liable for the injuries sustained by the claimant and ordered compensation for the proven damages.

R.M v MEC for the Department of Education, Limpopo (4242/2016) [2025] ZALMPPHC 28 (24 February 2025)