Bath Primary School Stages First Community Forum

To bridge the gap between school and community, Bath Primary School in St. Thomas has taken a proactive step by staging its first community forum.

Held on the school compound on Wednesday (January 28), the event brought together representatives from various government and non-government agencies for an evening of information sharing and conversation.

Principal, Devmarie Blake-Brown, remarked that, “as an institution, we do recognise that the engagement of all stakeholders will result in positively shaping the success of the school. Most times, school tends to focus on teachers, parents and students and forget that support from the wider community is just as important hence the reason for this forum.”

Mrs. Blake-Brown outlined that the forum is hoped to be the beginning of a “strong partnership” between the community members and the school, creating a safe space for useful and essential information to be shared and respectful dialogue to take place.

She noted that the objective is to make the community “a better place.”

“We hope that it (the forum) will bridge the gap between the government policies that exist, education, and you as the people who live here from day-to-day. When the community is growing and developing, the students will also grow and develop into good citizens,” Mrs. Blake-Brown said.

Presenters included Inspector Donald Burke of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) Bath Division, who explained the police’s role in the community; Attorney/Legal Adviser, Davia Blake, who spoke about the importance of estate planning; National Commercial Bank (NCB) representative, Lisa Grant-Francis, who encouraged the residents to financially plan for their future; and Executive Financial Adviser at Sagicor Bank, Jheanel Wilson, who discussed the value of life insurance.

Representatives from the HEART/NSTA Trust, the National Parenting Support Commission (NPSC) and the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) also discussed their services.

Also in attendance was Member of Parliament (MP), St. Thomas Eastern, Yvonne Shaw.

The forum was held under the theme: ‘Come. Connect. Learn. Build our Community Together.’