School Ties

From true-crime pioneers IdeaCandy (Devilsdorp, Tracking Thabo Bester) and Steinheist director Richard Gregory, School Ties confronts the grooming and sexual abuse of learners in some of South Africa’s most prestigious boys’ schools, unravelling the trauma endured by victims and the culture of silence that allows this to happen, as well as the responses of authorities, schools, and society at large.

The four-part series examines the tragic suicide of 16-year-old Thomas Kruger on the grounds of the elite St Andrew’s College in Grahamstown; looks at how a former Parktown Boys’ High School educator normalised violent and sexual behaviour; and delves into Julio Mordoh’s suicide a decade after allegedly experiencing abuse by his school sports coach. The final episode investigates a ring of school coaches accused of sex offences and speaks to South African Police Service Colonel Heila Niemand, who led the operation. 

School Ties highlights the red flags that could point to abuse and offers insights from child protection specialists and experts on children’s rights, including Childline South Africa CEO Dumisile Nala, Child Protection and Development specialist Luke Lamprecht, clinical psychologist Marita Rademeyer, child protection activist and journalist Robyn Wolfson Vorster, and Deon Wiggett, the author of My Only Story: The Hunt for a Serial Paedophile.

Cape Town Today says, “School Ties serves as an urgent call for action and a beacon of hope for the countless victims who have been silenced for far too long… We can only hope that this series will act as a catalyst for significant change.”