ECYS Minister updates on maintenance work at Marie Genevieve de Weever School

SUCKER GARDEN--Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport (ECYS), Melissa Gumbs on Tuesday provided an update on the ongoing remediation and repair works at the Marie Genevieve de Weever Primary School in Hope Estate.

As previously reported, at the request of Minister Gumbs, the Inspectorate of the Ministry of VSA conducted inspections at several public schools to identify structural and public health challenges and to assess their readiness and suitability for safe occupation. Following these inspections, some classrooms at Marie Genevieve de Weever Primary School were issued a stop order and temporarily closed.

Since then, the Ministry of ECYS has been working closely with the Division of Public Education and the school management team to address the identified issues and restore the affected classrooms.

On Friday, December 5, the policy advisor in the ECYS cabinet met with the head of the Division of Public Education, the Marie Genevieve de Weever school management team, and the respective service providers tasked with performing the necessary works at the school. During this meeting, the representative from the Minister’s cabinet provided a clear order of works to coordinate efforts between the various service providers to ensure that all remedial works are carried out properly and in sequence.

As part of this schedule, cleaning and technical works began on Saturday, December 6. These included:

• Removal of ceiling tiles in five upstairs classrooms
• Pest control treatment and spraying of the ceiling areas
• Installation of new ceiling tiles on the same day

The classroom cleaning process began on Monday and will continue through today. This includes thorough cleaning of all affected classrooms to ensure they are safe and hygienic for students and staff.

The remaining works will focus on the exterior areas of the classrooms. These include cleaning the outside of the classrooms and installing spikes to prevent birds from nesting on the rolling shutters, a recurring problem that has contributed to unsanitary conditions. This phase is expected to be completed by Wednesday, December 10.

The overall goal is to ensure that the classrooms which were relocated can return to full use by January 2026. Conducting these works during the holiday period allows the repairs and cleaning to be completed while students are out of school and minimizes disruption to teaching and learning.

The Minister noted that one or two classrooms have been temporarily housed at the Division Exams location to guarantee continuity of instruction. She expressed appreciation to all parties involved.

“I want to thank parents, the school management team, the Division of Public Education, and the Division Exams staff for their patience and cooperation during this period,” Minister Gumbs stated. “Their flexibility has allowed us to prioritize the health and safety of our students while ensuring that learning continues.”

A more comprehensive and final update on the works at Marie Genevieve de Weever Primary School will be provided once all phases have been completed and verified.

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