Staying Safe and Warm This Winter: How We Prepare and Support Our Communities
As temperatures drop and the rains return, winter in Cape Town brings with it both seasonal challenges and the opportunity for communities to come together. For residents and businesses, preparation is key to ensuring safety and continuity. At the same time, the City of Cape Town is stepping up support for our most vulnerable residents through its strengthened Winter Readiness Programme.
This season, we share practical tips on how to prepare your property for winter, and we highlight the ways the City is working with shelters and non-profit organisations to offer care and dignity to those most in need.
WID Winter Readiness: Prepare Your Property and Stay Safe
Each year, our City Improvement District teams ramp up winter preparedness efforts, working with the City of Cape Town to clear stormwater drains, report damaged infrastructure, and ensure that public lighting and safety measures are in place. But we also rely on local businesses and residents to help prevent flooding, minimise damage and reduce risk in the public realm.
Here are some essential ways you can help:
Winter Action List for Businesses and Property Owners
- Clear gutters and drains of leaves, litter and debris to prevent blockages and flooding.
- Check outdoor lighting to ensure walkways and entrances are well lit during shorter daylight hours. Consider switching to dusk-to-dawn bulbs or adjusting timers.
- Trim trees and remove loose branches that may snap during strong winds or heavy rain.
- Install or check non-slip mats and surfaces to reduce slipping hazards in wet weather.
- Inspect and clean security cameras for visibility in poor weather conditions.
- Service vehicles to ensure brakes, tyres, lights and windscreen wipers are in top condition before the rainy season hits.
- Encourage high visibility clothing for staff working outdoors or on the roadside during low-light periods.
Reporting Winter Issues
Help us keep public spaces safe and functional by reporting the following to the City:
- Blocked stormwater drains, potholes or road damage
- Faulty or broken streetlights
- Flooding or infrastructure damage
Visit www.capetown.gov.za/servicerequests to log a fault or call the City’s customer centre at 0860 103 089.
For emergencies such as fires or flooding, contact 107 from a landline or 021 480 7700 from a cellphone.
As always, you can call our 24hr Security Control Room for any public safety emergencies on 021 565 0900.
The City’s Winter Readiness Programme: Supporting Shelters and Strengthening Compassion
For many in Cape Town, winter is not just inconvenient – it’s a time of heightened vulnerability. In response, the City of Cape Town is rolling out an expanded Winter Readiness Programme for 2025, working with nonprofit shelters to provide warmth, safety and a pathway to long-term support.
What the Programme Delivers
- R1.2 million in essential goods distributed to shelters, including:
- Blankets and mattresses
- Hygiene packs and cleaning supplies
- Food parcels and warm meals
- R230,000 in EPWP funding for shelters to hire additional staff to manage increased winter demand
This tangible support helps shelters meet the urgent needs of people experiencing homelessness during harsh weather while also ensuring their facilities run safely and smoothly.
A Network of Care
Partner organisations include trusted names like The Haven, MES, U-Turn Ministries, Oasis – Reach for Your Dreams, EI Theos, and TASP. These shelters do more than offer temporary refuge. They provide skills development, addiction recovery, counselling, and job placement services to help people break the cycle of homelessness.
Some of these organisations partner with our CIDs – such as MES who work as our “green ants”, cleaning and assisting urban maintenance tasks all year round.
The City ensures that participating shelters meet high standards in public benefit, safety, and developmental programming – reflecting a long-standing tradition of community care and accountability.
WID Urban Maintenance and Cleaning
Our maintenance teams are always busy improving our community by addressing issues of maintenance and cleaning of streets, pavements and public spaces, including weeding, clearing gutters and drains.
One such project this year has been the Glaren Road landscaping project in an open space, pictured above. This is part of our ongoing mandate to provide top-up urban cleaning services to boost the sanitation and safety of the area, together with the City’s Cleansing Department.
