Violent clashes between “town and country” gangs at the Berkeley Institute are leading parents to withdraw their children from the school, according to documents passed to The Royal Gazette.

A letter from Calvin White, chairman of the school’s board of governors, to the mother of one of three boys expelled from the school for fighting explains that the 16-year-old is involved in “gang activity within the school” and “is part of an unsavoury element responsible for creating an environment ... where students feel threatened and unsafe”.

Mr. White adds: “This has reached the point where parents are withdrawing their children from the school.” The mother told this newspaper that her son was not involved in the January 17 disturbance which led to the trio being permanently excluded and claimed he did not receive a fair hearing in front of the school’s disciplinary panel.

She now fears he will not get to complete his education — despite public assurances from Government that the boys will be allowed to stay in the public school system,

“If (my son) is this monster away from home then show me and help me to save him because he’s still young and there is still time,” said the mother, who asked not to be named. “I am not saying he is not a bad element because maybe he is. But I’m looking at my son’s future here. Where do we turn from here? What services are available for us?”

A report written by principal Michelle Simmons on the January 17 fight reveals that “town and country” clashes have been going on since last year.

She writes that two of the expelled boys, both believed to be 15, were suspended last October for a similar situation but returned to school “after a successful mediation in which all parties agreed that there would be NO FURTHER incidents of fighting between the ‘Town’ and ‘Country’ groups”.

Mrs. Simmons’ report describes the clash on January 17 which saw six boys directly involved in violence.

She says one of the boys who was later expelled hit another over the head with a walking stick he had brought into school “as a weapon”, causing a lump on the back of his victim’s head.

Security guards had to break up the fight and the school community was “badly shaken” and individual students “traumatised” by the violence, according to Mrs. Simmons.

Two days later, she writes, two boys from opposing groups got into a fist fight which resulted in the town student hitting the other in the face with his crash helmet as pupils walked past.

The injured teen, who has a medical condition which makes it dangerous for him to receive blows to the head, suffered two chipped teeth and had to have five stitches in his nose, which now needs realigning.

“We have seen an escalation in violence as a very small minority of students feels that they can get away with terrorising others with impunity,” writes Mrs. Simmons.

“We have received information also about some of the ‘Town’ group threatening/bullying other students on a regular basis.

“Several students have already been injured, and a clear message must be sent that we have ZERO tolerance for acts of violence, before anyone is more seriously injured. Some students do not feel safe at school.”

The report describes the 16-year-old boy who was expelled as one of the town group and says that since he left the school, staff there have been abused and intimidated by his parents and relatives.

The report does not describe him as being part of the January 17 “melee” but says he was involved in a verbal altercation the previous day.

The boy’s mother, a single parent from Pembroke, denied there had been any intimidation and claimed Mrs. Simmons made the decision to expel her son, who had been suspended twice before, on the day of the fight, making a later disciplinary hearing a waste of time.

“Their minds were made up. Berkeley basically shut the door and nothing is explained to me,” she said. “I called the Ministry (of Education) and they said they are looking into what transpired.

“I’m not saying (my son) is a good boy. But why can’t he be suspended? Why is he expelled? What happened to detention? What happened to writing lines? I have asked the male teachers to strap him if he is so bad.

“He is just at home to become a statistic. There are so many black boys out there. He can go to The Educational Centre (TEC) but he won’t be going there because it’s like putting the words ‘Westgate Correctional Facility’ on your resume.”

She insisted her son was not in a gang and said of the school: “It’s like they are creating this gang environment. My son was raised in the country. We just moved to town. How does that make my son a town gang member?”

Mrs. Simmons said earlier this week she could not comment on the violence or the expulsions. Mr. White said the expelled students posed a safety threat.