School principals were last night given a substantial pay rise after months of negotiations with the Ministry of Education and Development.

The Association of School Principals agreed to a salary increase of $2,884 for each of the 25 headteachers in primary, middle and senior schools - along with a three percent increase for the period between September 2002 and August 2003. The Ministry described the pay discussions as "frank and open".

Minister Paula Cox said: "I welcome the fact that the Association of School Principals negotiations has now been settled with a collective spirit of mutual goodwill.

"Now that the issues relating to wages for our administrators have been finalised, we can focus attention on the areas of greatest need in the Bermuda public school system.

"We look forward to working with all of our school administrators as we develop and roll out our strategic plans for the future.

"This is to ensure that we continue to raise the bar and to deliver a quality education for our students."