Education and Development Minister Paula Cox said no decision had yet been made about how the Island's two secondary schools would deal with the overflow of students in September with the creation of the fourth year of high school for public school students.

During the education budget debate in the House of Assembly on Friday, she said the task force set up to look at solving the over-crowding issue was still working through the options - but realised that not everyone would be happy with the eventual outcome.

Both CedarBridge Academy and Berkeley Institute will have more students than space this September as the creation of an extra senior level means no pupils in the public system will graduate this year.

Those students in senior three, which would normally graduate in June, will stay on for an extra year.

It will result in the schools having too many students, while Bermuda College, which takes most of its freshmen from the public system, will have too few.

Ms Cox told Parliament the original plan was to have the new Berkeley Institute open by September this year to cater to the influx of extra students.

"However, the new school will not be ready until September next year, causing an overflow for 12 months.

"And when CedarBridge Academy was first planned, it was believed that it would be able to hold more students than it actually could.

She said: "The options considered include creative solutions, such as flexible scheduling - which would allow teachers and students to come to school in different shifts, thereby using the classroom space in a highly efficient way.

"The timetables and scheduling options for the senior schools have been carefully examined." She said the task force is looking at everything from how much additional space is needed, what staffing will be required, and the transport and family implications for both students and teachers.

She added: "The task force is now working through the implications of this option. Both school sites would still need some additional space and we are exploring possibilities. The options are being narrowed and the focus is on more flexible scheduling and this will, of necessity, require us to ensure that we optimise the benefits so that it truly can be a win-win situation for everyone, with the welfare of the students as the paramount consideration."

The Education Ministry has been criticised by parents and staff at the schools for leaving the issue to the last minute. They said it had been known for some years that there would be additional students this year, but no attention was given to it until late last year.

When The Royal Gazette interviewed the Minister early this year on the subject, she said the claims and criticisms by parents were valid and said she believed it could have been dealt with better in the past.

She said on Friday: "Regrettably, there is no press-button solution, and no simplistic solution is available, so it is taking some time. However, we have to get it right, so we are ensuring that we give this matter an exhaustive scrutiny, recognising that it is unlikely that the ultimate recommendation will attract a hundred percent support."

Chairman of the CedarBridge Academy Parent Teacher Student Association Terry Flood urged the Minister and the task force to reach a decision soon.

He said: "We should have had an answer to this in January - we are now in March. I'm very disappointed that we don't have any answer on that yet.

"If push comes to shove, we would like to see portable classrooms at the school.

"The Minister has been told our concerns. We want to keep the school body together - that means students staying at the CedarBridge site and attending classes during the same hours. Whether that will happen, we don't know."