Parents protesting the transfer of two school principals are preparing to take their case to court to seek a judicial review of the decision, it emerged yesterday.Flanked by police, a “communication march” of more than 100 parents and children set out from Victor Scott School shortly before noon, briefly halting traffic and drawing cheers from onlookers.Yesterday’s procession was led by PTA Presidents Azuhaa Coleman of Victor Scott, and Quinton Ming of TN Tatem Middle School.The two carried a letter protesting their lack of input in the Ministry of Education’s intention to move principals Valerie Williams and Francine McMahon to other schools.Premier Paula Cox joined Education Minister Dame Jennifer Smith outside the House of Assembly, commending parents for speaking out.Ms Cox indicated that the demand by parents for more consultation could move to an implementation of school councils as suggested in the Hopkins Report.Dame Jennifer noted that the 2007 Hopkins Report on Bermuda’s public schools had recommended school councils with parents involved.“At the time, we could not find enough people willing to serve,” she said. “Times change, people change, and now it appears people do want to be involved.”However, Dame Jennifer added that putting councils in place with parents on board was not a simple matter.“It would require an amendment to the Act,” she said.Asked for Government’s reaction, Dame Jennifer said: “In our letter of response, one thing I indicated is that there is no role for the PTA in an employer-employee matter.”She said the Ministry’s decision to move principals had been made in accordance with union collective bargaining agreements.Speaking afterwards, Ms Coleman said: “They’ve told us that already. We are not trying to control the Ministry. All we are trying to do is get the Minister to understand that if they are going to make decisions that affect us, they need our input.”Their lawyer, Eugene Johnston, said the matter was being prepared to go before the Supreme Court for judicial review.“This has very little to do with the views of anybody who has a contractual relationship with the Ministry,” Mr Johnston said. “It’s simply a matter of whether they as parents have the right to voice their views, and have their considerations taken into account. In other words, it’s about the process, more than the decision.”Mr Johnston said the issue was not strictly a question of principal allocation, but an “underlying ethos” behind major decisions affecting schools.He added: “We oppose the claim that you need a school council in order to involve parents. We will maintain that position.”With school banners, posters and drums, the march down Court Street wound onto the House of Assembly grounds to be met by Government and Opposition MPs.The statement handed by Mr Ming to Dame Jennifer began: “Our Communication March is not a demonstration of discontent with Government. It is not only about ‘four principals being rotated within the public school system’ without parental input in the decision to do so.“Our actions speak to the relationship we as parents insist upon having with our Government, regarding our children’s education moving forward.”For Victor Scott School, where educators and parents say children have undergone repeated changes in the school guard, the loss of Ms Williams has been an emotionally charged issue.Since going public in March, the school PTA have repeatedly accused Government of ignoring parents’ wishes. Yesterday’s statement said both PTAs had been treated with “utter disregard”.It also pointed out that many in Government had once attended Victor Scott, formerly Central School, where they “first availed themselves of the opportunity to pursue education to battle systematic marginalisation”.And the statement said: “We are also mindful of the irony that it is the same Government that called for a ‘New Bermuda’ of the ‘responsible parenting’ that we are committed to practicing.”The letter finished: “If we have miscalculated and our Government continues to refuse to support us in this objective, it will stand exposed. And we will continue on to do right by our children by reinforcing our March with concerted actions, including to have its decision reviewed by the courts of law while the policy that gave rise to it is thrown to them mercy of the court of public opinion.”Ms Cox, meanwhile, hailed the demonstration as “democracy in action”, and Dame Jennifer told students to apply in their own studies the example set by their parents.