Parents furious over transfer of popular Wardija centre head

Parents of children attending the Wardija Resource Centre are up in arms after finding out that the school’s head was transferred a week before the end of the scholastic year. 

Stephen Grima, who served as the head of school for two years, was informed this week that he is being transferred to the San Miguel Primary Education Resource Centre in Pembroke.

The news did not go down well with parents whose children are enrolled at the Wardija centre. 

Parents shared a petition between themselves to confirm their support in Grima, whose leadership they described as energetic and dedicated. 

“Many new reforms and projects that have been initiated and are being worked on have been pushed forward thanks to his determination. Wardija school – especially now – needs his leadership, even for the sake of continuity on all projects embarked upon,” the petition reads.

Several parents spoke to Times of Malta about Grima’s leadership. 

Abir, whose daughter attends the centre, said her daughter had severe behavioural problems resulting from her autism and traumatic events as a child. Her school experience was a struggle, until Grima became the head of school. 

“She acts up sometimes but, whenever she sees Stephen, she calms down.”

She said Grima made an effort to include parents in the running of the school and that channel of communication has made parents, teaching staff and students feel safer.

“I’m worried that the next head might not be like Stephen. My daughter had bad experiences in the past with other heads and LSEs.”

Another mother praised his efforts to carry out after-school activities to create a sense of community at the school. “The kids go to school thanks to him,” she said, saying he is very involved with the students. 

Many parents said Grima was instrumental in standing up for the children at the school. 

“He’s a hero in everyone’s eyes,” a mother told Times of Malta. 

She said Grima helped create an environment that made the children feel more accepted and included – something which they might not have experienced in normal schooling.  

Parents were especially pleased with the Social Enterprise schemes Grima introduced that allowed students to create products that could be sold and marketed outside school, with the support of teachers and LSEs.

Another mother, whose son has been attending the school ever since Grima took the post, said he was a pillar of support over the past year and made the school stronger.

“After Wardija, students have limited to no prospects of what to do once their years at school are over. Grima collaborated with an NGO so that students terminating their years at Wardija can continue working and give them a purpose,” she said. 

The Wardija Resource Centre is a dedicated school for students with disabilities aged 16 and over. It is one of two specialised schools in Malta catering to this cohort.

However, the future of the school has been a point of concern over the past scholastic year. 

In late 2025, the Union of Professional Educators said it was informed of an “allegedly secretive plan” to phase out the resource centre following a private sector agreement to provide a new educational programme for persons with disabilities aged 16 and over. 

The new programme, ‘Life Map’, is considered more therapy-based and less education-focused. 

The Education Ministry dismissed the union’s claim and insisted that the Wardija centre will remain open and continue to provide services to students for years to come. 

However, a few months later, the Wardija Resource Centre was not listed as an option for enrolment for the 2026-2027 scholastic year, again raising concerns about the future of the school. 

Karen Buttigieg, president of the National Parents Society for Persons with Disabilities, told Times of Malta that Grima was especially instrumental in keeping spirits high when the future of the school was thrown into doubt. 

“As a parent, when you feel your child is in a school that is being phased out you start to give up a little. The parents give up and the teachers tend to jump ship. He kept spirits high,” she said. 

Buttigieg also said that Grima helped create opportunities for the young persons that they had not yet experienced in their previous schooling environments, including an international Erasmus experience. “Young people were able to experience these things like others their age in other schools,” she said.

Questions have been sent to the Education Ministry about the transfer.