Education ministry boosts public school budgets by $757.5 million for 2026/27

Jamaica’s public schools are set to receive a further $757.5 million for the 2026/27 school year, Education, Skills, Youth and Information Minister Dr Dana Morris Dixon announced at Wednesday’s post-Cabinet media briefing at Jamaica House.

“On average, every public school is getting 55 per cent more funding from the Ministry of Education. That’s a significant increase and you’ll see the increase is actually higher for primary schools and special needs institutions,” she said.

According to Morris Dixon, the ministry merged existing grants into a single operational grant before applying the uplift. Principals may spend the money as they see fit, she noted, provided they stay within set guidelines.

“Twenty-five per cent of the amount given should be used towards administration. Repair and maintenance is 20 per cent of the grant. There is also learning environments, so getting material in for teaching and learning or working on new initiatives around teaching and learning, 30 per cent of the grant can be used on that,” she shared.

A further 15 per cent is earmarked for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics (STEAM), with 10 per cent reserved for student welfare.

“The grants have already started going out. Every public school, in the second week of June, would have gotten their first tranche and the first tranche is 30 per cent. The second tranche goes out the first week in September and then the third tranche goes out in December,” the minister said, noting that the second and third payments represent 15 and 20 per cent of the award.

She added that how much each campus gains depends on enrolment size and other measures, including how many pupils are on the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH).

A ministry paper obtained on the funding changes states that yearly operational allotments now run from roughly $1 million to $4.8 million.

Under the previous formula, infant schools were given an operational grant of $500,000 covering the first 150 pupils, $2,700 for each pupil beyond that, and a $150,000 maintenance grant, producing a floor of $650,000 a year.

“The new framework increases the minimum allocation to $1,000,000 and will provide an additional $25,942,900 in operational grant support for the 64 stand-alone infant schools, increasing total funding from $46,657,100 to $72,600,000,” the document read in part.

Primary schools will likewise see a $1 million floor, raised from $650,000.

Special education campuses are currently paid according to the grades they serve. Learners at infant and primary levels receive the same package as other infant and primary pupils — $500,000 for the first 150 students plus $2,700 for each extra student — while secondary-level students attract $17,000 each plus a $150,000 maintenance grant, again yielding a $650,000 yearly minimum.

“The proposed framework increases the minimum allocation to $3,500,000 and the maximum to $9,500,000 and will increase operational grant support for 13 special educational institutions from $25,145,800 to $50,536,800 over two years,” the document said.

For secondary schools, the operational floor rises from $2.385 million a year to $7 million.