Our History
In 2020 Athlone Pre-Primary will celebrate its 73rd Anniversary. Yes, that’s right; we’re 73 years old!
The Athlone Group for Nursery Foundation was founded in 1948 by group of Barkly House parents. Its first nursery school opened at St Francis Home in Thornton Road, Athlone. In 1955 the Athlone Group opened another school at Blouvlei to cater for another 45—50 children.
In 1948 and 1952 a training course for young women to staff nursery schools had begun. The premises were cramped but the result for the children, their parents and the students amply justified the faith of the organizers. In 1960 the Athlone Group obtained the property in Honeyside Road which the developed in the present school and the Athlone Training Centre (thereafter named Sallie Davies Training college for Pre-Primary Education).
In 1984 the nursery school became a state school when it was taken over by the then Department of Education and Culture. It was unique in that it was the only pre-primary school under that Department. By 1985, the Sallie Davies College of Education moved to bigger premises in Thornton Road, although Athlone Pre-Primary School remained their demonstration/practicing school. The Sallie Davies College of Pre-school Education has since amalgamated with Cape Town College of Education along with Barkly House.
During 2000, the college all amalgamated with Cape Technikon & is now known as CPUT.
Since 2008, Athlone Pre-Primary formed a partnership with the College of Cape Town & remains a practicing school for them.
