The size of classrooms and a lack of funding for public primary schools are among the Bermuda Government’s most serious concerns, according to the school reorganisation (Score) report.

The report, commissioned by Wayne Scott, the Minister for Education, has set in motion a strategic financial review that will attempt to remedy some of the failings in the island’s primary schools.

Also on the top of the priority list was the condition of school buildings and range of programmes.

The financial viability of a school for reorganisation, considered a priority, was not evaluated due to “lack of data”.

All of the island’s 18 primary schools were scored in 14 study-factor criteria — school utilisation (optimum school populations); classroom capacity (adequate space per child per classroom); financial resources (that are provided by the Ministry of Education); financial viability (the option for reorganisation is viable); building condition; safety and accessibility; recreational space; range of programmes; student/teacher ratio; IT infrastructure (access to high-quality technology); special services (for children with special needs); transportation (reasonable access to transport to and from school); school as a community partner; and flexibility (flexible in how space can be used to accommodate changing needs).

Each criteria was scored on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the best score. Any school scoring under 4 was described as “in need of review”.

Some of the criteria were more heavily weighted as a priority. The role of a school as a community partner, the one category where all schools scored highly, was placed in the lowest priority group along with transportation.

All 18 primary schools scored less than 4 for classroom capacity, safety and accessibility, range of programmes and IT infrastructure while 17 of the schools scored less than 4 for adequate financial resources.

These are some of the findings:

SCHOOL USE

Highlights: St David’s Primary School, one of the schools earmarked for potential closure or consolidation, boasted optimum school utilisation (5) along with Dalton E Tucker. Eight schools scored the minimum 1 point.

Victor Scott Primary School was the most over-utilised at 130 per cent with Harrington Sound Primary School second at 124 per cent.

On the other end of the scale Prospect Primary School — one of the schools slated for closure or consolidation — is at 46 per cent capacity and East End Primary School at 57 per cent.

Considerations: “School with low utilisation percentages were factored into the scenarios for school closure and school reorganisation,” the report said.

• CLASSROOM CAPACITY

Highlights: All 18 scored 1 for classroom capacity meaning every school has less than 60 per cent of classrooms that can accommodate the MOED capacity of 40 square foot per child. Some classroom sizes are too small to accommodate the children (18 students at P1-3 and 25 students at P4-6).

Considerations: Adopt the 40 foot square guidelines to determine the number of students that can be accommodated in classrooms. Review 2015 enrolment numbers to ensure numbers do not exceed capacity.

• FINANCIAL RESOURCES

Highlights: All but one school scored less than 4 meaning a full review is necessary. Some 12 of the schools scored 1 and a further 3 scored 2. St George’s Preparatory School scored the best at 4 while Heron Bay Primary School and Somerset Primary School scored 3. Qualitative data for all 18 schools indicate the need for resources to support instruction, programmes or building condition improvements. Gilbert Institute was singled out as a school most in need of financial resources.

Considerations: Spread out resources evenly, establish protocols for addressing resource needs and ensure adequate resources are provided to eliminate the need for supplementation with personal finances.

• FINANCIAL VIABILITY

Information unavailable due to “lack of data”.

• BUILDING CONDITION

Highlights: Some 15 of the 18 schools scored less than 4. “The qualitative data indicate that serious building conditions have to be addressed at many schools. Harmful building conditions include: leaking; mould; rodent infestations; termites; sewage infiltration; faulty plumbing systems; storm damage. Plumbing and electrical systems were not fully documented but were often referred to as “areas of challenge”.

Considerations: Develop a plan for assessing conditions and improving them along with a monitoring system and a review of the relationship between the Ministry of Education, Works and Engineering and other ministries.

• RANGE OF PROGRAMMES

Highlights: All 18 schools scored less than 4 because schools do not have an IT coordinator. Two schools did not have a reading teacher — East End and Paget Primary School.

The lowest scorers in this category were Paget, Northlands and East End with scores of 2.6 and under while the top scorers were Prospect and Victor Scott (3.5).

Considerations: As a matter of priority reading teachers would be provided for all schools. Establish an IT co-ordinator position for all schools and a job description based on 21st century standards. Develop a plan for implementing, monitoring and sustaining IT programmes. Establish 21st centaury standards for all programmes (art, learning support, sports, guidance/counselling, music, educational therapy and reading).