Phambili High School was established in Durban number 90 Cross Street by the civil organisations under the leadership of the late Mam’ Florence Mkhize and Fatima Meer in 1986 with the objective of assisting learners who were the victims of the Apartheid government system. The school operated as a private school, funded by NGO’s like UNESCO with the assistance of the ANC, from 1986 up until 1994 when the country was liberated. The school started as a finishing school but had then transformed to be a high school offering tuition from grade 8 to 12.