Confirmed by SAPS and the Stellenbosch Thuthuzela Care Centre, reported GBV offences and cases increased over the challenge period. In a context where underreporting remains one of the biggest barriers to justice, that movement in the right direction is significant. The team had set a goal to increase reporting by 70% and reduce case withdrawals by 50% in the WC024 area. Getting more people through the door was the first part of making both possible.

Why People Started Speaking Out

The increase in reporting did not happen by accident. The Stellenbosch task team ran awareness programmes across schools, community groups, elderly residents, women, men and boys. They organised marches. They trained grassroots teams. At the centre of all of it was one practical focus: helping communities understand the Domestic Violence Act well enough to recognise what it covers and feel confident enough to act on it.

When people know what qualifies as an offence and believe the system will respond, they report. That is what the data reflected.

The Intervention Nobody Expected

The most talked-about initiative to emerge from the sprint was not a policy change or a new facility. It was a council.

At the end of May, Stellenbosch Municipality inaugurated its first Junior Town Council. Young people were formally brought into local governance structures, given access to how the municipality works from the inside, and asked to represent the voices of their peers. Mayor Jeremy Fasser described it as giving young leaders a seat at the table.

In the context of GBVF prevention, that seat matters. Young people who understand how governance works are better placed to shape peer culture, name the issues affecting their communities and hold institutions accountable over time. The Junior Town Council is not a youth programme sitting on the sidelines. It is a long-term investment in the generation that will either change or carry forward the norms that make violence possible.

Building the Infrastructure Around Survivors

The task team anchored much of their work in physical infrastructure. A new Thuthuzela Care Centre gave the team a dedicated space for survivor support. Dedicated GBV trauma rooms were established in police stations to reduce the emotional stress of reporting. These changes made the experience of coming forward less re-traumatising, which matters enormously for whether survivors stay in the process or withdraw.

Then came the intervention that the team themselves described as simple, but which changed what was possible in practice. Survivors in outlying areas had no reliable way to reach the care centre after hours. The team arranged a small fleet of unmarked vehicles with trained drivers available for after-hours transport. Getting to the centre sooner meant police could gather time-sensitive evidence more reliably. It also meant survivors did not have to wait until the next morning and talk themselves out of going.

When the Plan Changed

Not everything went as designed. The Department of Social Development, which was expected to take a lead role, was absent for significant parts of the sprint. Rather than stalling, the task team redistributed that responsibility across Social Service Organisations and other partners already in the room. The work continued. The gap was noted, not used as a reason to stop.

Having a confirmed budget and municipal support meant the team could make decisions quickly when they needed to adapt. That backing made the difference between a sprint that stalls at the first obstacle and one that finds another route.

What Comes Next

The Stellenbosch task team did not wind down when the 100 days ended. They have already started a second cycle. Neighbourhood watch groups and additional organisations have joined the effort. The team has identified better communication and mutual support among partners as the next areas to sharpen.

The planning tool they used to track and measure their work has become a reference point for how they reflect and adapt going forward. The infrastructure is in place. The relationships are built. The Junior Town Council is meeting. The unmarked vehicles are still running.

This sprint planted something that is already growing into its second season.