Two primary schools and a nursery school will miss the bell when the new school term begins today but Minister of Education Kay McConney says the focus should be on the other 23 schools in the summer works programme opening.
Yesterday during a tour of the Wilkie Cumberbatch Primary School – which is scheduled to reopen on September 26 – McConney also gave details on why the Eden Lodge Nursery School and Gordon Walters Primary School would remain closed longer.
“Of the 26 schools which were part of the major works in the summer programme, most are going to be ready [today]. Wilkie Cumberbatch will be ready in a week . . . additionally, Eden Lodge Nursery . . . will not be ready but it will be fairly soon, within a week, and we have an alternative facility at the nearby Seventh Day Adventist church.
“At the Gordon Walters Primary, we know there’s still some final touches to be done there. There’s some painting done and we want to make sure that smell has dissipated – we do not want the children back into the environment and find there are then some environmental issues impacting them – so that will be delayed by about a day or two. Let us not think about the three which are not ready, let’s think of the 23 that are,” she said.
As for the problem-plagued Lawrence T. Gay Primary School, Chief Education Officer Dr Ramona Archer-Bradshaw said it was all systems go there. (CA)
