Wesley Hall Junior School to close early

Wesley Hall Junior School will close early on Wednesday to facilitate a meeting, the Ministry of Education announced Tuesday night, a day after several teachers called in sick due to lingering concerns about potential health hazards at the City school.

“The Ministry of Education, Technological and Vocational Training wishes to inform parents that classes at the Wesley Hall Junior School resume for all students Wednesday, June 19, 2024, for part of the day. The school will close at 1:30 p.m. to facilitate a meeting between staff and the ministry,” the very brief statement said. “Parents are therefore asked to collect their children by 2 p.m.”

Classes at the school were forced to end at noon on Monday after several teachers called in sick. Only five of the 32 teachers had reported to work by late morning.

Barbados Union of Teachers (BUT) president Rudy Lovell had told Barbados TODAY that the teachers’ grievances about unhealthy conditions at the school were well known to the ministry.

“Teachers are frustrated over the conditions at the school; the school is an old school, it’s plagued with mould, rats [and their droppings], cockroaches, wormwood, inadequate bathroom frustrates, and teachers are generally frustrated,” he said. (SB)