A Soshanguve mother says her daughter suffered serious head injuries after allegedly being assaulted by a teacher in 2018 when she was six years old. The girl, now 14, requires specialised education and ongoing medical treatment after allegedly suffering serious head injuries when a teacher reportedly struck her at Bokamoso Primary School.

A criminal case was opened against the teacher, who is now retired, and the matter is currently before the Pretoria North Regional Court following years of delays. The teen testified in court against her former teacher last month, who is facing a charge of assault on a minor.

Her mother believes the alleged assault changed her daughter’s life forever. She says it left her with developmental difficulties, requiring specialised education and ongoing medical treatment.

A mother’s life changed

Health-e News is not publishing the mother’s name to protect the child’s identity. The mother says her daughter was among the top-performing Grade 1 learners at Bokamoso Primary School in Soshanguve Extension 2 at the time of the alleged incident. She says her daughter arrived home from school one day in 2018 with red eyes and dizziness.

She says she initially thought her daughter was tired from the heat and allowed her to rest.

“Ten minutes later her older sister brought the matter to my attention asking me if I saw how badly injured her younger sister was as other teachers were speaking about it,” she says.

When she examined her daughter, she noticed marks on her face and injuries to her hand.

“She told me she was struck by a hard wood object on her head and because the teacher didn’t stop hitting, she blocked with her hand. I immediately called the teacher and asked her what she hit her with, because she was badly hurt. She said I must come back to school and all she said was that she did not notice that she was hurt,” she says.

According to the mother, the teacher offered to take the child to a doctor, but she refused and instead took her daughter to a nearby clinic in Kopanong.

The clinic referred her to Tshwane District Hospital, which subsequently referred her to Kalafong Hospital for an electroencephalogram (EEG), a test that records electrical activity in the brain.

She was later referred to Weskoppies Psychiatric Hospital and back to Kalafong for a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan.

According to her mother, the girl continues to receive treatment through Weskoppies.

Living with the consequences

The mother says doctors advised her that her daughter needed specialised education because of developmental difficulties.

“The doctor sat me down and gave me the devastating news. He explained to me that my child’s life will change forever, that she needs a school with special needs and that she’ll never be a normal child again. She handed me a letter to apply for her at Medicos Special School in Soshanguve and a letter to Social Development to apply for her disability grant because she has slow mental development.”

The single mother says caring for her daughter has placed a financial and emotional burden on her family.

“Her monthly treatment and counselling sessions cost money. Although she gets the grant it’s not enough. Sometimes she misses her appointment and there’s no food. It’s a lot on me too. Her life affected my own health. I’ve been on depression medication since 2023 after the case was struck off the roll due to lack of evidence. It is really painful because I gave birth to a normal child,” she says.

She says her daughter, who previously performed well at school, now struggles with reading, writing and drawing. The mother believes the difficulties are linked to the alleged assault. The medical evidence concerning the child’s condition has yet to be presented in court.

“I already spent a lot of money and the case has been dragging for years. Other days I’m unable to attend. My wish is for the case to conclude so that I can take further steps towards the Department of Education.”

Education department says it has no record

Health-e News approached Bokamoso Primary’s School Governing Body (SGB) for comment. Representatives of the SGB declined to comment on the incident, saying they were not serving on the governing body at the time. However, a representative confirmed that the matter had been reported to the Gauteng Department of Education.

The mother also showed Health-e News emails in which the Gauteng Education Department acknowledged the incident. However, when approached for comment, Gauteng Department of Education spokesperson, Onwabile Lubelwane said the department had no record of the allegation.

“GDE can confirm that there are no records in our disposal regarding the said alleged incident and the implicated individual is no longer employed by the department as she has since retired in 2024.”

Case returns to court after years of delays

The mother approached AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit in January 2023 after the criminal case against the teacher had been withdrawn.

According to the unit’s spokesperson, Barry Bateman, the mother had struggled to get the matter reinstated despite assurances from police and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).

Bateman says the mother initially encountered difficulties when trying to open a criminal case. He says police allegedly told her she needed permission from the school principal before laying a charge against the teacher.

“When she was finally able to open a case and the accused appeared in court, the prosecutor determined that the victim was unable to testify and required psychological support,” says Bateman. 

“Following the unit’s intervention, it was discovered during consultations with the prosecutor that the police had not obtained statements from the victim’s older sister, the school principal, or the learners who witnessed the assault. The unit’s intervention ensured that the required evidence was obtained, compiled in the docket, and the case was enrolled for prosecution.”

Bateman says the girl and her older sister completed their testimony in December last year. Both testified through an intermediary, with proceedings held behind closed doors.

“The mother has given her evidence in chief and is currently under cross -examination. The hearing is continuing on 16 November.”

Medical evidence still to be heard

NPA spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana confirmed that the case is before the Pretoria North Regional Court and that the accused faces one count of assault on a minor. She says the case had previously been removed from the court roll pending further investigations and was reinstated after outstanding investigations were completed.

“The matter which is currently in trial-within-a-trial by the defense was adjourned for further hearing. The matter was previously struck off the roll pending finalisation of investigations, and re-instated after the outstanding investigations were completed and the matter reconsidered,” Mahanjana says.

The NPA confirmed that the girl’s medical report had been obtained but that the doctor had not yet testified.

“The medical report has been obtained, the doctor is still to testify. The necessary measures were put in place for the child to testify and at this stage the child has finished testifying,” she says.

The trial is scheduled to continue on 16 November 2026.