Westville North Kumon study Centre celebrates 25 years of operation on the 1st of October 2026
The Centre was opened by the Instructor, Kevin Mayo, after he was introduced to the Kumon programme, and he immediately saw the value of what the programme could offer to young learners to bridge learning gaps and build essential maths and English skills. Kumon was founded almost 70 years ago, originating in Japan and now centers are seen in almost every city across the globe, with millions of students enrolled.
The Westville north Centre originally started on the Bluff for a very brief period before relocating to Highway College in Pinetown and then ultimately moving to the Westville North library. Unfortunately, forced to close doors during Covid, an alternative venue was found at the Chiltern Hills Sports Club and that’s where they currently operate from.
Kevin, his wife and trained assistants can be found at the centre on a Tuesday and Friday afternoon, ensuring that each student at the centre as well as the digital students on Connect feel valued and part of the Kumon family. Students come in to exchange homework as well as complete set work, while being observed and assisted where necessary. Watching young learners complete complex calculations without the use of a calculator, or simply master addition without needing to count (some as young as 3 years old) is what the Kumon method is all about.
Kevin has seen 9 programme completers come through the centre, as well as a tenth due to complete before the end of the year. Having a student complete the programme takes a lot of determination and perseverance from a student, and it makes an instructor very proud to receive an award for nurturing that student. Westville North also has the distinction of having Africa’s Youngest double completer. A young lady named Sahashra completed the English programme at the age of 7 and the maths programme just before her 10th birthday.
Both programmes go from basic maths and reading to calculus and university level English – so this was quite an achievement for Sahashra! She was also invited to be a guest speaker at the Global Student Conference, which is held online and streamed to Kumon students all over the world.
Kevin says ‘after a long day of teaching high school boys science and maths you would expect me to be absolutely exhausted, but once we are at the centre and our students start coming in with their happy faces, excited to come work, or tell us they got 95% on a maths test, or that their English marks improved after just a few months, the exhaustion just melts away! We hear from parents that they can see their children’s confidence and skills grow, and they begin to enjoy preparing for exams, knowing that they are going to do well. That feedback makes such a difference to us as a team’
Kumon has made such a difference to so many children that have attended at the Westville North Centte, and each child becomes part of the centre family. They celebrate all sorts of achievements and see local schools posting about the achievements of their Kumon students, and this makes them even prouder to have had a part of the successes that their students achieve. ‘It’s been 25 years and we have loved every day we get to spend with our amazing students.’
The Centre can be contacted on 0832063583, and they offer Free Assessments all year around.
