A community for all

Michaelhouse believes in education beyond its school. Through Michaelhouse’s Community Partnership Trust ‘MCPT’, Michaelhouse’s flagship Outreach initiative, the school enables the provision of 13 high-impact educational programmes across 16 under-resourced schools within our 35 kilometre footprint radius.

Michaelhouse Community Partnership Trust

MCPT is the Michaelhouse (MHS) Outreach programme. It is an independent non-governmental and public benefit organisation supporting 16 rural under-resourced rural ‘footprint’ schools in the immediate vicinity of MHS situated in the Midlands, Kwa-Zulu Natal. While it is financially independent of MHS, it is governed by six trustees, all connected to the school, and a number of volunteers (see below).

Michaelhouse is a globally ranked independent boys’ boarding school in the Midlands with a 127-year history of excellence in education. Passionate about Outreach, our MCPT office has, as its primary mission, the restoration of our 16 ‘footprint’ schools as functional places of learning by concentrating on four core elements;

Our primary motive is to deliver sustainable projects on the basis of ‘fair exchange’, placing the school at the centre of the community and ensuring the meaningful engagement of all our stakeholders.

We work collaboratively with the Department of Basic Education through an MOU to deliver on these four core components in a manner which adds value to our immediate community, our schools, their parents and their learners.

Our funding is made up of private sector donors, parents past and present, Old Boys, and local business with an office provided by MHS.

The following explains the work we do in our ‘footprint’ schools and hopefully will give the reader insights into the significance of our challenges and how you, as a member of our extended community, may wish to assist

Schools

Projects

Teachers

Learners

Our 13 Community Projects

Leadership Development

We conduct annual workshops with FEDSAS to improve SGB/Principal governance capacity. Twice per annum we meet with all Principals through CitizenLeaderLab to improve leadership skills and school functionality

Teachers & Instructional Functionality

On an ongoing basis we offer teachers training workshops to improve both subject knowledge and teaching skill

Infrastructural Maintenance & Dignity

Annually we evaluate infrastructure in all our schools to develop a maintenance and care programme on the basis of a ‘fair exchange’ model

Educational Technology

We wish to equip our schools with improved technology in the form of ‘smart’ classrooms and IT teaching expertise

Learning Outcomes

We hope to improve our pass rates at every level, increase the number of bachelor passes in Grade 12 and moving towards a more holistic education experience involving extracurricular activity

Career choices through Eduvelopment

We have adopted a career development app which assists learners with subject choices in Grade 9, and tertiary education options in Grade 12

Internships

We employ young graduate teachers, ‘Eduhelpers’ and deploy them into our schools to assist with teaching and administration, currently 25 are sponsored

Transport Subsidies

We provide subsidised transport to learners in the junior grades from Mooi River to Shea O’Connor and Hlanganani in Nottingham Road

Literacy

We facilitate Literacy programmes in our 10 Primary Partner Schools to enhance reading for meaning in English

Primary Healthcare - St Raphael's

A primary healthcare team focusing on nutrition and eye testing across Partner schools together with ancillary community focused healthcare services

Early Childhood Development

We monitor and support ECD capabilities in the 8 ECD centres that serve our footprint schools with ongoing training. In addition, in the Lions River and Zenzane communities, where there are only rudimentary ECD facilities, we are raising funds to significantly expand and enhance ECD Centres

Arts, Choir, Theatre & Sport Competitions

Annually we conduct inter-school events at MHS engaging with the Midlands Community where possible

Core Maths – SIMI

Paul de Wet, a maths teacher at MHS runs workshops for Grades 8,9,10,11 an 12 to improve Core Maths competence, the programme has been adopted by the DoE and is provincial in its reach

Recent Work

Much of our work takes place on the ground in our 16 footprint schools. Regularly, boys visit the schools to add value; our volunteers visit to assess needs and follow up on actions; the Trafalgar maintenance team visit frequently to fix what they can.

On a regular basis, Principals, staff and learners attend a range of facilitated workshops at Michaelhouse; Leadership training in the Centenary Centre by Karen Mackenzie and Steuart Pennington; Maths (SIMI) lessons in a packed Schlensinger Theatre by Paul de Wet; IT training workshops in our IT centre by our MCPT Office; Eduvelopment career guidance training in the Makan centre by our MCPT Office; Annual Intersport competitions on our playing fields sponsored by Old Boy Paul Barnett; An annual Art and Choir Competition in the Schlesinger Theatre also sponsored by Paul Barnett; Citizen LeaderLab workshops with Principals and Business leaders in the Roy Gathorne Pavilion run by Karen Mackenzie. Our MCPT Board meetings are hosted in the Heritage Centre.

In respect of the critical importance of Principal leadership in particular we focus both on the hard and soft skills; these include budgeting, administration, curriculum management, discipline, parent liaison on the ‘hard’ side and HR management, motivation, communication, relationship building and care on the ‘soft’ side. We encourage the notion of the school being at the centre of the community, use local artisans where we can and engage with parents often.

Annually we stage Sports, Art and Choir competition. These are whole day affairs and are attended by the boys and the public. The energy is palpable.

Throughout the year we run learning workshops for both staff and learners:

Curriculum and pedagogic skills for teachers;
IT skills for teachers and learners;
Career development skills for learners;
Core Maths skills for learners

Our Trustees

Our Fulltime Staff

Testimonials

In my time at the school since 2019 it has been incredible to witness the extent to which our community Outreach programme has grown. We have expanded our reach from a few community projects and one school to now servicing 16 schools with the clear focus of improving them as functional places of learning. Our principals are more engaged, our teachers more enthusiastic and our enrolment numbers growing. Our testimony is that we have seen an improvement in our pass rates across the board.

Antony Clark

Rector

When I became acting principal of Asithuthuke school in 2021 we were in a troubled space, our matric results were at a 30% pass, our infrastructure was dilapidated and our enrolment numbers declining. Over the past five years our matric results have improved to 90%, our enrolment grown from 170 to 260 kids, Our classrooms, kitchens and computer room have been refurbished and we have built a boarding facility for our grade 12 pupils to enable afternoon and evening revision. All this enabled by dedicated volunteers from MCPT. God bless you.

Nonduduzo Khanyile

Principal Asisthuthuke Combined School

When I came to the school I had no hope for my future, but in the last few years the teaching has improved through stronger leadership and the addition of Eduhelpers. In Grade 12 I was able to make use of the boarding facility to assist me with revision afternoons and evenings as well as Saturdays and Sundays. I was also exposed to the Eduvelopment program on Career Guidance. I achieved Bachelor pass in my matric and have now enrolled in a tertiary institution to study Animal husbandry. Three years ago I didn’t believe any of this was possible. Thank you Michaelhouse.

Amandla Sikhakhane

Asithuthuke Pupil

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