Catching the boat to school: children from Herm to attend primary school in Guernsey full-time

Primary school children from Herm will travel to Guernsey via boat for all their classes from September this year as part of a year-long trial.

They currently only go to a school on the island one day a week.

It's hoped that going full-time will improve the quality of their education, as they will be in classes with other pupils the same age.

It's also expected that it will boost their social life, and better prepare them for the transition to secondary school.

There are four children at school in Herm across three year groups.

The Education Committee estimates the change will save it between £60,000 to £85,000 a year.

However, it stresses that this wasn't the main reason behind the decision.

The children will attend Vauvert Primary School in Guernsey.

Guernsey Director of Education, Nick Hynes, paid tribute to Mary Carey, who has spent nearly 20 years teaching children who live in Herm.

"We have discussed this decision at length with Mary and it’s clear that it is very challenging to teach extremely small groups of children of mixed ages within the primary phase, particularly when there are fewer than five children at different ages and different stages of development."

Deputy Andrea Dudley-Owen, President of the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture, says the "best interests of the children" was behind the decision.

She added that the children attending school in Guernsey means they'll be educated at the same pace as people their own ages.

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