summer will be delayed at least until next year, Education Minister the Hon.

Gerald Simons confirmed yesterday.

The conversion of Sandys Secondary, Warwick Secondary, Whitney Institute, and St. George's Secondary to middle schools was to begin this summer, according to the 1992/93 Budget statement delivered by Finance Minister the Hon. David Saul in February.

And design work for a new senior secondary school on the site of the defunct Devonshire Academy at Prospect and for upgrading Berkeley Institute to another senior secondary school was to "continue in parallel with work on middle schools''.

But while demolition work continues at Prospect, Mr. Simons said physical changes to the designated middle schools "will certainly not be seen before the end of this year''.

Government's fifth middle school is planned for the Bermuda College's old Technical Building on Roberts Avenue. But this cannot get under way until the college is completely consolidated at its Stonington campus off South Shore Road.

There are still three facilities to be built at the College: a $2-million building for staff offices which is under construction and will take about a year to complete; a $7 million-plus academic building to include sections for fine arts classrooms and a gymnasium. It will take about two years to complete; and an Applied Sciences building which is also estimated to cost more than $7 million and take about two years to complete.

"At this stage we're looking at the detail plans on the five middle schools and we're trying to finalise that first,'' Mr. Simons said.

Discussion with principals and architects on floor plans and preliminary drawings will go on for "several months''.

Mr. Simons said Education Department staff are also working on plans for the middle school curriculum.

He said details on which high school building will be converted first will be decided by the special implementation team.

"The critical thing is the implementation team,'' Mr. Simons said. "I'm hoping the whole team will be in place by the end of October.'' Mr. Simons promised that the public will see "a lot more activity'' next year.

But Dr. Saul, who pointed out that the delay in beginning the conversion of high schools to middle schools was not due to a lack of funds, said Government would like to get construction going.

"The Budget has been basically approved by the House so money is available,'' he said.

"What we would like to do is get construction going because this will generate employment.'' Last November, Mr. Simons announced that Government's major education reform plan could be thrown off schedule by two years due to education pressures, such as Warwick Academy's former decision to go private this year and Berkeley Institute's demand to be a senior secondary school.

The public school system is scheduled to be completely reformed by September, 1995.

The Hon. Gerald Simons.