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A St Thomas father is desperately trying to get his son back in school after he said the child was sent home from school in February following a fight with another student.

"Dem send him home, seh him lick a yute inna him head with board. Suh mi guh up a di school, and mi and principal a reason, and him just seh, him cya stay yah. And him just walk weh left mi and di youth sitting down, cuz him seh 'here is no day-care centre'," he said.

But the father admitted that his son, who has had epilepsy since he was four, could be troublesome.

"Him rude, mi a tell yuh di truth. Him do some outta rage thing, like fight and throw stones, and him aggressive too," he said.

The father said he sought the help of the Child Protection and Family Services Agency in February to get his child back in school, but because he didn't receive a letter of expulsion, he was referred to the Ministry of Education.

But after weeks of calling and visiting the ministry, the father said he has still not received any help.

On his own, he has been trying to get his son into another primary school in the parish, but said this is difficult because his son was in a special education class.

Psychological evaluation

Meanwhile, the principal of the school is denying that the child was expelled.

He said the father was told to take his son to do a psychological evaluation before they decide on his future at the school.

"I told him (the father) that because of numerous incidents of him harming other people's children, we have asked him on numerous occasions to seek the relevant mental evaluations. And until those are done, and a report comes back to us, instructing us to deal with him, then we can't keep the child here, harming other people's children," the principal said.

He said that the school has only since received a letter from the father informing them that he has started the process.

But the father said he took his son to a psychologist and had two tests done.

"Mi duh brain scan, and a next one, and dem say nothing nuh wrong wid him brain. A di doctor pull it and read it and tell mi seh, 'nothing nuh wrong wid yuh son brain'," he said.

However, the father said he thought the doctor would have relayed that information to the school.

He told THE STAR that he hasn't worked in a month because he has to stay home with his only child.

"Mi cya guh work, mi cya even go a mi bush, mi just can go feed mi hog dem and come back in, and a nuh like a send mi cya send him go a school, or like mi siddung nah do nothing," he said.

"Mi cya have mi youth a yard and him nah guh a school, and a school time. When yuh look inna di community, everybody gone a school. Mi haffi have him inna di house lock up, and mi haffi inna di house lock up wid him because mi shame."