The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information is advising school administrators to keep the cost of registration packages between $1,000 and $5,000.

Making the call, senior advisor at the ministry Robert Miller said the ministry has received reports that some schools are charging exorbitant sums, when the mandate of the Government is to make the cost to parents “minimal”.

He said the administrators need to adhere to the directive that all “charges for registration packages must be approved by the minister before they are effected”. Miller, who was delivering the keynote address at the 2016 graduation ceremony for Tarrant Primary School, at Hope Fellowship Church, in St Andrew on Thursday, said the non-payment of fees cannot affect the placement of students at schools.

“Board chairmen are being asked to provide guidance and ensure that school administrators follow these directives in order to minimise the cost to parents as well as ensuring that no child is disenfranchised as they seek to prepare for the upcoming school year,” he said.

Miller told the audience that the ministry’s regional officers will be very vigilant over the next few weeks to prevent any deviation from the policy position.

— JIS