Pupils expelled from The Berkeley Institute will not be excluded from the public school system, Education Minister Randy Horton pledged last night.

Earlier this week The Royal Gazette reported that three students were expelled following a violent incident at the school. Last night Mr. Horton issued a statement saying he regretted recent acts of violence at The Berkeley Institute.

He said he had received the recommendation of expulsion of three students, but emphasised the students in question would not be expelled from the public school system.

“While they will no longer be students at The Berkeley Institute, the Ministry will make every effort to place them in an educational programme which will allow them to continue with their secondary education,” said Mr. Horton. He said it was too early to say where the students would be placed but said they “will not be thrown out onto the streets”.

“No student in Bermuda will be deprived of the opportunity to be educated,” Mr. Horton said.

It is extremely rare for pupils to be excluded from Berkeley and chairman of Governors Calvin White told The Royal Gazette>the expulsion of the three students was a “very sad day for the school”.

However, he said the three — whom he described as being involved in a “melee” on January 17 — had posed a threat to safety and to the school’s objective of allowing children to grow academically.

No further details of the incident or the age or gender of the students have been released, although one source said it was thought they had been involved in a fight on school grounds.

A spokesperson for the Education Ministry said it was unable to provide any statistics regarding expulsions because it tries not to terminate students from the public education system.

“In fact, the Ministry does all that it can to ensure that students continue their education,” said the spokesperson.

In rare cases where students have been recommended for expulsion, the action can only be carried out after it has been approved by the Minister of Education, Sports and Recreation. Should this happen, parents of an expelled student may appeal to the Appeals Committee against the decision of the Minister.

Expelled students can stay in school system