Pretoria estate said to be safest in South Africa

The estate where South African athlete Oscar Pistorius lives is supposed to be one of the safest in the country.

In 2009, Silver Lakes Golf Estate was voted “the most secure estate in South Africa”, according to its website.

Located in the east of the country’s administrative capital Pretoria, the estate consists of more than 1,600 plots of land up to 32,000sq ft built around an 18-hole golf course.

Offering a tranquil lifestyle “unparalleled in the Pretoria region”, it has electrified fences, armed 24-hour security, and manned controlled access.

Prices for homes can be up to 9m South African rand (€750,000) for a five-bedroom property.

As well as its golf course, Silver Lakes estate has tennis courts, a driving range, a restaurant, a squash club and a fishing club, as well as a “social responsibility committee”.

The estate incorporates a wildlife reserve, and in recent years, new lakes have been built and existing ones enlarged to turn the estate into a wildlife haven with rare birds and animals such as African spoonbills, mongooses, and giant African bullfrogs.