Bernd Holtkamp had a vision: to create a kindergarten rooted in sustainability—energy-efficient, environmentally conscious, and community-oriented. His search for the ideal location led him to Raithby, a small, rural settlement where farmworkers and their families live in scattered, remote communities. The widespread nature of these settlements made consistent childcare and early education nearly impossible. The need for a central childcare facility was urgent—making the land next to the local primary school in Raithby the perfect location.
Partnering with the Technical University of Munich, Holtkamp turned the dream into a groundbreaking model project. Students from the university’s civil engineering and architecture departments took on the challenge: 30 of them wrote their theses on the kindergarten’s design and construction. Their award-winning concept became the blueprint for a six-week hands-on building phase, during which students and faculty brought the project to life on-site in Raithby.
The kindergarten was funded through a combination of private contributions, sponsorships, and support from the university and its students—at a total cost of around ZAR 1.8 million (approximately €107,000). The result is remarkable: a state-of-the-art preschool equipped with solar-powered underfloor heating in every classroom.
To ensure accessibility for all children in the area, a minibus was also purchased to transport kids from surrounding farms to and from the school each day.
Since 2007, the preschool has been lovingly managed and maintained by a dedicated committee: Christa de Freitas, Robert Fraser, and Mearle Hendricks, the director of Brak en Jan Kindergarten.
For more information, visit: www.brakenjan.org.za
Committed to community and sustainability—since 2007.