Vetting is a legal requirement aimed at protecting children and vulnerable persons within school environments. It applies to educators, staff and all individuals who have access to learners, ensuring that only suitable persons are allowed to work with children. In South Africa, this safeguarding process is supported by two key Registers, the National Child Protection Register (NCPR), established in terms of the Children’s Act 38 of 2005, and the National Register for Sex Offenders (NRSO), established under the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act 32 of 2007.

These Registers play a critical role in helping schools and education authorities verify the suitability of individuals, thereby strengthening child protection and promoting safer schools. During the school readiness visits conducted by the Department of Basic Education (DBE) in November 2025 and January 2026, school principals reported a lack of awareness of the mandatory legal requirement to vet current and prospective employees against the National Register for Sex Offenders and the National Child Protection Register.

In response, the DBE has launched the NRSO-NCPR Vetting Campaign to raise awareness and ensure compliance with mandatory NRSO and NCPR vetting for all individuals working with learners, to keep children safe in school. The objectives are to increase awareness of legal requirements for NRSO and NCPR vetting amongst school communities, with a special focus on public ordinary schools and schools for learners with special educational needs, to ensure 100% compliance among educators, support staff, volunteers, and contractors, strengthen child safeguarding practices in schools, and promote a culture of accountability and zero tolerance for child abuse.

The Campaign targets School Governing Bodies (SGBs), Principals and School Management Teams (SMTs), educators, and non-teaching staff, Representative Council of Learners (RCL), community leaders, parents and caregivers, volunteers, NGOs, and service providers, including scholar transport and security services. Key Campaign activities will include Policy Awareness and Training through mandatory compliance workshops for Principals and SGBs, distribution of clear guidelines and checklists for vetting processes, and online training for school staff in collaboration with the South African Council for Educators (SACE) and the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development.