to postpone its annual prizegiving ceremony until next year.

The assembly hall -- which the school has been promised since 1972 -- was expected to be completed in time for the new school year.

But Works and Engineering Minister Leonard Gibbons said the building had not been completed due to a "multitude of issues'', including the fact that contractor Michael DeCosta of DeCosta Construction had experienced problems with his sub-contractors.

Mr. Gibbons, last week, said the firm had assured Government that the building would be ready by the end of September.

But this week he confirmed that while progress had been made on the building, it had not been completed.

"I have not been there today (Tuesday),'' he said. "But the main objective of the exercise is not to blame anyone, but to get the building done.

"I would think it would be finished in another two weeks.'' Principal Gail Graham said she was not counting on the new deadline.

However, she stressed that she was determined to hold Whitney's final prizegiving as a high school in the assembly hall.

"I'm not really counting on it being finished by November (the normal time for prizegiving,'' she said. "I've put off the prizegiving until January.

"I will be inviting lots of people to the prizegiving.'' She added that if last year's fifth-year students could not make the event, their parents or guardians could accept the prizes on their behalf as was usually the case.