GES Warns SHS Heads Against Turning Away Students Over 'Old Trunks' And Chop Boxes

• Ghana Education Service management flagged reports that some SHS and SHTS institutions were refusing entry to newly admitted students over the type of storage containers they brought to school
• The directive warned that such practices place unfair financial pressure on parents and guardians who cannot afford alternatives prescribed by individual schools
• Regional Directors have been instructed to relay the warning to all school heads, with sanctions threatened for any who defy the order

The Ghana Education Service (GES) has directed heads of senior high schools and senior high technical schools (SHS/SHTS) across the country to stop turning away newly admitted students on the basis of the type of personal storage containers they bring to school.

In a circular issued by GES management, the Service stated it had received reports indicating that some boarding schools were refusing entry to, or declining to accommodate, students who arrived with metal trunks, wooden chop boxes or similar personal storage items. The directive did not specify when the incidents were recorded or which schools were involved.

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GES directive on student admission

GES management expressed concern that the practice places undue financial strain on parents and guardians who may not be in a position to purchase particular brands or types of containers that individual schools have chosen to prescribe.

The Service emphasised that all students who have been duly admitted to boarding accommodation must be treated equitably, regardless of their economic circumstances or those of their families.

The circular instructed Regional Directors to convey the directive to all school heads under their jurisdiction without delay.

Any school found to have turned away, denied admission to, or refused boarding accommodation to a student solely because of the type of trunk, chop box or container brought to school is to be investigated, with findings reported back to management.

The Facebook post is below:

Sanctions threatened for non-compliance

GES management made clear that the directive carries consequences. Any head of an SHS or SHTS who fails to comply will face disciplinary action in line with the applicable standards, regulations and laws governing the Service.

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The position taken by GES reflects a broader principle that access to boarding facilities, once admission has been granted, should not be conditional on a student's or family's ability to meet demands that fall outside the formal admissions criteria.

The service has not indicated whether it plans to issue updated guidelines on what schools may or may not prescribe as part of their boarding requirements.

The Facebook post is below:

GES arrests women for defrauding BECE students

Earlier, YEN.com.gh wrote about the arrest of two women accused of defrauding BECE candidates by promising to secure placements in their preferred senior high schools.

The suspects allegedly collected between GH¢9,500 and GH¢22,000 from each victim.

The case emerged after affected candidates and their parents presented evidence directly to Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu.

Police later arrested the suspects at a CSSPS Resolution Centre in Accra, while two alleged accomplices were directed to report for questioning.

Source: YEN.com.gh