Coming Together to Help Schools in Need
Easing the Back-to-School Burden for South African Families
Every year, thousands of South African parents and caregivers face the same challenge: finding the money to prepare their children for the new school year. School uniforms and stationery are often among the biggest and most urgent expenses families must manage.
The cost of these essential school items continues to rise. Today, the average back-to-school cost for a primary school learner exceeds R3 000, placing significant pressure on household budgets.
According to the annual 1Life Survey, 95% of parents feel stressed during the back-to-school period, while 88% report that these costs cause financial strain. School uniforms are consistently listed as one of the highest-priority expenses.
For many families, lay-by purchases provide some relief by spreading payments over time. However, for others, unpaid lay-bys can become an additional financial burden when resources run short.
To help ease this pressure, the FundiFoundation is contributing R30,000 towards school uniform lay-bys at participating retail stores. Through this initiative, the FundiFoundation will contribute up to R1,000 per qualifying lay-by to help parents and caregivers settle outstanding uniform costs.
The initiative aims to:
- Support parents and caregivers by contributing up to R1,000 per qualifying school uniform lay-by at Ackermans, Jet and PEP
- Encourage qualifying parents and caregivers to apply for lay-by relief
- Invite the public to support the initiative through donations to the FundiFoundation
- Drive awareness of the “Bring a Little Joy” campaign across Fundi-owned channels
By easing the burden of school uniform costs, the FundiFoundation hopes to help families start the school year with dignity, confidence, and peace of mind.
#Unite4Schools | Save Our Schools
Save Our Schools
FundiFund and Save the Children SA is calling on business leaders to Unite for Education and help us rebuild our schools and the hope young people have in grown ups.
Funds raised will go a long way to help us get students back to school. At least 139 schools were looted and vandalised during the July 2021 unrest. Among the schools that lost everything was Golden Steps, a special needs school, in Verulam, KZN.
The school was completely ransacked, with looters taking everything from food and appliances to specialised computers and TVs designed to assist children with disabilities.
For many children in South Africa, school is so much more than just a place to learn. It is often where they receive their only nutritious meal of the day. It is a place of hope, long lasting friendships and big dreams.
Doing Good is Good Business
Fundi Corporate Social Investment
By 2019, through a small CSI budget and employee contributions, Fundi was already making a significant impact through student bursaries, financial commitments to institutions as well as contributions to Bukho Bhami Community Centre and Sibonile School for the Blind.
Doing Good is Good Business, and due to our ethos of doing more to enable more learning as well as being confronted by the challenges students face in getting access to education, Fundi made a strategic decision to establish the FundiFoundation as a long-term commitment to enabling education dreams and making an impactful difference in society.
FundiFoundation is a universe of all things that enable education and learning for those who can’t help themselves.h
