Cape Town, South Africa
When Mthwakazi Nancy Soqaka lost her teaching job during the COVID-19 pandemic, she faced a decision familiar to many experienced Early Childhood Development (ECD) practitioners. She could look for another job, or she could take the risk of building something of her own.
Nancy chose to build and start her own preschool.
Today, just four years later, Nancy is the founder and owner of Grow Buddies Preschool and Aftercare in Khayelitsha and has recently opened a second ECD centre, growing her business, creating jobs, and reaching more children with high-quality early learning. Her journey is an example of what is possible when ECD centres are supported to grow as sustainable small businesses rather than remain small and survival-focused charities.
Starting With Experience, Not Capital
Nancy spent 15 years working at a preschool in Pinelands before losing her job in 2021 due to COVID-19. Encouraged by her former employer and driven by a deep passion for children, she decided to open her own centre in the community where she lived.
Starting without funding was daunting. With donated equipment, a rented house in poor condition, and just four children enrolled, Nancy relied on word of mouth, community trust, and her professional experience to get started.
“It was a little bit scary, but I was brave. I told some of my neighbours that I’m going to open my preschool, and because they knew of my previous experience they trusted me. One parent even told me they would wait for me to open my school before enrolling their child anywhere else,” Nancy recalls.
Grow Buddies Preschool and Aftercare opened in 2022, responding to a clear need in Khayelitsha for quality early learning delivered in English and rooted in strong educational practice.
Turning a Passion Project Into a Sustainable Business
As enrolment slowly increased, Nancy recognised that passion alone would not be enough to sustain her centre or put food on the table. She needed business skills. She was introduced to Grow ECD, a non-profit social enterprise that supports ECD centres to operate and expand as viable businesses.
After meeting the required enrolment threshold, Nancy joined Grow ECD’s Business Accelerator Programme, a six-week training focused on building confidence, business skills, and long-term sustainability for ECD owners.
“Before, it was very stressful for me to do the filing and bookkeeping. But now I use the free Giraffe App. I can register my finances there, do a staff register, take the children’s register, and record my expenditures. I can record everything that is happening in my centre,“ says Nancy. Using the Grow ECD App, Nancy now manages enrolment, staff records, finances, and reporting in one place, reducing administrative pressure and enabling better decision-making.
At the same time, education mentors supported her with classroom setup, curriculum planning, observation, and assessment, strengthening the quality of education offered at Grow Buddies. “The quality of education is five-star. The children’s language, confidence, and development improved across the board,” she says.
Growth That Creates Jobs and Reaches More Children
As quality improved, demand followed. Enrolment soon exceeded the space available at Nancy’s original site. Temporary solutions helped for a time, but further expansion became necessary.
With access to Grow ECD’s funding pathways, Nancy secured funding to refurbish a second property, enabling the opening of Grow Buddies 2. At the same time, Breadline SA, a Grow ECD partner, generously supported the expansion by providing a classroom container at the original site, increasing capacity and improving infrastructure.
Together, this support made it possible for Nancy to expand responsibly while maintaining quality.
Today, Grow Buddies supports:
- 17 children in the original classroom
- 20 children in the Breadline classroom container
- 16 children at Grow Buddies 2
From a single centre with four children, Nancy has built a growing ECD enterprise that creates employment and expands access to quality early learning in Khayelitsha.
What Parents Are Seeing
Parents report incredibly positive changes in their children’s development.
“My daughter started here only speaking Xhosa. After two years, she was fluent in English,” says parent Tumelo Leballo. “We never expected this level of development. We are incredibly proud of Grow Buddies.”
Parents describe children who are confident, excited to attend school, and better prepared for formal schooling.
A Model for Scaling ECD Impact
“If we are serious about reaching more children with quality early learning, we have to stop treating ECD centres as informal projects and start supporting them as the businesses they are,” says Tracey Chambers, Co-Founder of Grow ECD. “Nancy’s journey shows what becomes possible when ECD entrepreneurs have access to the right business skills, systems, and partners. When centres are financially sustainable and professionally run, they don’t just survive, they grow, create jobs, and expand their impact year after year.”
Nancy is already planning her next phase of growth. Her long-term vision is to develop a larger campus with multiple classes, outdoor play spaces, and education up to Grade 7.
“I know my dream will come true,” she says.
The post Khayelitsha Educator Opens Second ECD Centre appeared first on The Home Of Great South African News.
