Pilot program for extension of school hours to broaden in new academic year

The pilot program for the extension of school hours for secondary school is expected to be implemented in several other schools in the September 2025 academic year.

Minister of Education Daryll Matthew gave the update just moments after Rawdom Turner was sworn in as the Minister of Social and Urban Transformation.

“We have about five or so months to look at it the tweaks, to get more programs in place, to converse with the other schools that we are looking to bring on board so that in September 2025 we can roll out in a more substantial way,” Matthew revealed.

Presently, the initiative is in two schools, and Minister of Education Daryll Matthew explained on state media that they are making the necessary assessments and tweaks.

“There are definitely tweaks that will have to be made and it’s a slow rollout because we have to get it right. It is going fairly okay. There are some shortcomings that we have seen we will address them but that is why we are doing it as a pilot in the first instance before we roll out to the general school population,” Matthew explained.

Matthew clarified that while the plan is to expand the program, it does not mean that automatically the five-day school week will transition to 8 am- 3 pm from its original 8 am- 1:30 pm time frame.

“Even when we get to the next academic year, it may not be everyday in every school in the first instance. Some schools may start with everyday, particularly the schools that the pilot is taking place in, but new schools as they are brought on board may do the same phased rollout,” he added.

The Sir Novelle Richards Academy (SNRA) and Glanvilles Secondary School are the two schools involved the program.

The schools were strategically selected to represent different student population sizes, with SNRA serving over 500 students and Glanvilles Secondary accommodating between 100 and 200 students.

The extended hours will follow a structured schedule as SNRA will operate until 3 pm on Mondays and Wednesdays, while Glanvilles Secondary will extend its hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays.