Safety first at Babbel & Krabbel

Writer & Photographer: Hedda Mittner.

Babbel & Krabbel has become an institution in Hermanus; ask anyone about it and they’ll tell you it’s been there “for as long as I can remember”. Many prominent local residents spent their formative years at this preschool but, like most institutions and businesses in the Overstrand, gigantic efforts are required to keep it going during the Coronavirus pandemic.

Shani Eksteen with one of her Grade RR (5 years) learners, Kimberley Louskitt, who is very happy to be back at school.

Fortunately, Principal Lorna Such, who started the first pre-primary class way back in 1979, is up for the challenge and has gone to astonishing lengths to keep her staff and young charges safe.

Janine van Niekerk with one of her charges in the baby class (3 – 18 months) at Babbel & Krabbel Aftercare.

Now known as Hermanus Pre-Primary and Babbel & Krabbel Aftercare, this Early Childhood Development (ECD) Centre has 276 learners from the ages of three months to six years (Grade R), and also provides after-school care for both its own learners and those form Hermanus Primary School. However, not all their learners have returned, as some parents are still apprehensive about the possibility of infection, while others are no longer able to pay the school or after-care fees due to salary cuts and lay-offs.

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