The best glass? Equitable access to quality education in inner-city Kingston, Jamaica

Using a case study approach, this paper describes the history and considers the success of an innovative hybrid school model aimed at improving access to quality primary education in inner-city Kingston, Jamaica. It examines access, student achievement, non-academic issues and the challenges of COVID-19. It draws on personal experience and data from empirical research at the Chetolah Mel Nathan Education Centre, a recent merger of the Mel Nathan Preparatory School and the Chetolah Park Primary School in inner-city Kingston. The merger of these two schools resulted in the higher aspirations and outcomes associated with the prep school ethos, along with the range of government resources. While this particular hybrid model depended on a unique situation in Jamaica, it points to the more general potential for co-production in Jamaica, the wider Caribbean and further afield.