Schools reopen their doors this morning for the Michaelmas term but one will remain closed for the next two days.
Unforeseen circumstances and bad weather have delayed the start of the school year at Wesley Hall Infants in Kings Street, St Michael, while cleaning up continues.
A news release from the Ministry of Education said yesterday that “major repairs” had been done at the school during the summer vacation and the clean-up work was as a result of this. As such, the release advised parents the school would be closed until Wednesday.
When contacted, Chief Education Officer Laurie King said that while the delay was regrettable, the school would definitely be open by Wednesday.
“There was work done on the school as part of our summer programme but there is additional cleaning which has to be done. We worked on a number of schools over the summer and all the other schools will be ready but in these things you will meet circumstances which require additional work, plus we had a lot of rain but I guarantee the school will be open by Wednesday,” he said.
A DAILY NATION team visited the school around 1 p.m. yesterday to get a first-hand look at the state of the repairs. There were desks out in the hall with plant pots containing dead plants on top. There was also a pool of water outside the bathroom area although it was unlikely it came from the bathrooms as they were dry.
The classrooms were a cluttered mess of furniture with desks and chairs piled everywhere while the floor of the canteen was wet. The only one present in the school was a janitor who was cleaning the offices.
A check with Shone Gibbs, an executive member of the school’s parent teachers’ association, revealed they were in agreement with the delay as he said it was important to take the time to ensure the school was a safe environment for students and teachers to attend.
“We are all on the same page on the matter; we want to ensure that when people return to the school it is a place conducive to learning and will not make anyone sick so we are in support of the move to keep the school closed,” he said.
Gibbs, who is also the first vice president of the National Council of Parent Teacher Associations, said he understood construction work had been done on the roof which involved a lot of relocation of equipment so it was important to take the extra time to ensure the air quality and the environment was “up to scratch”.
As for parents, he said the feedback had been generally positive.
“We have been seeking, through the various media, to inform parents there will be no school on Monday and they are putting the necessary the systems in place to take care of their children [for that period]. This is not a situation where we are incensed; we feel it is something where you have to do it right the first time,” Gibbs said.
Meanwhile, the Ministry has expressed thanks to all businesses and individuals who worked with it over the course of the summer to get schools ready for the commencement of the new school year.
