SCHOOLS in the embattled communities of West Kingston have been instructed by the Ministry of Education to reopen next Monday, as efforts to normalise life in the area continue.

Education Minister Andrew Holness took the decision yesterday after a tour of schools in the communities subdued by the security forces following almost a week of gun battles which left more than 70 people dead and several others injured.

Holness, along with senior ministry officials and journalists, visited several schools which appeared to be physically unaffected by the fierce conflict between members of the security forces and criminal elements, as a result of efforts to apprehend alleged Tivoli Gardens drug lord Christopher 'Dudus' Coke.

The party was unable to tour Tivoli Gardens on the advice of the security forces, but walked through sections of Denham Town where battle-weary residents and their children greeted them with queries about when schools would reopen as grim-faced soldiers kept close watch.

Holness announced after the tour that all schools would reopen fully on Monday, and that counselling sessions with teachers would begin today. He asked teachers to report to school tomorrow to prepare schools for reopening.

"The community is coming back to its normal way of life. I am heartened that people are saying that they want the schools to reopen, they want to send their children back to school," he told journalists after viewing St Anne's High in Hannah Town.

Other closed schools visited yesterday included Tivoli Gardens High, Denham Town High, Denham Town Primary, St Alban's Basic and Charles Chin Loy Basic.