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FAQs

The FAQs will be regularly updated to reflect emerging themes and common questions received throughout the engagement process. 

DECISION


  • The recommendation to close a school is not taken lightly and is being made in alignment with Board policy and informed by data. District staff have recommended this closure to the Board to ensure responsible use of resources to benefit all students while prioritizing education opportunities for Queen Elizabeth Annex (QEA) students..

    This school site has been previously identified for closure. Although each instance had specific circumstances, the District has noted each time that the QEA site is not required based on enrollment numbers. There are enough schools in the area to meet the needs of the population now and into the future.  

    Most recently, when QEA was proposed for closure in 2019, some members of the Board expressed a desire to approve an updated Long Range Facilities Plan prior to considering any school closure. In January 2021, the Board approved an updated plan. The plan outlines the District’s responsibility to manage its facilities in an efficient and effective way. 

    The District also acknowledges that the outstanding legal proceedings and as well as the potential for revenue generation to fund capital projects are related and time-sensitive factors for the Board to consider. It is important to note, however, that a decision about the future use of the QEA site is a separate decision that could come should the Board make the decision to close the school.  

    Go to rational for closure for more information.

  • No other annexes have currently been identified for closure consideration.   

    Board policy 14 outlines the process through which a school would be identified for closure consideration.  It includes senior management making such a recommendation at a public Board meeting and communicating such a recommendation to affected school communities. 

  • Public engagement is currently underway.  Please visit the project page for details about how you can participate.

  • The Board of Education, which is made up of nine elected trustees, will be making the decision.At this time no decision has been made. The Board will consider public and stakeholder feedback obtained through the engagement process before making its decision. The decision is scheduled to be made by the Boardat a public meeting on May 30, 2022. 

    For more information, view this detailed timeline about the closure process.

  • The District is committed to being open, transparent and keeping the community informed in advance as much as possible throughout this public engagement process. 

    The District will provide participants with meaningful opportunities to share their feedback to be considered by the Board as part of their decision-making process. The District invites all families, stakeholders and members of the public to participate in the engagement activities.

    The Board will consider public and stakeholder feedback obtained through the engagement process before making a decision. 

REASONING FOR THE PROPOSED CLOSURE OF QEA


DATA AND PROJECTIONS


  • Administrative data sources including, district enrolment reports, the birth registry from Vital Statistics BC, and the Universal Child Care Benefit recipient data from CRA are used to develop forecasting assumptions. These forecasting assumptions are used to project youth population estimates and enrolment projections which are updated annually.

    Census data is not used in the Distist’s projects because it is collected every 5 years is not sufficiently sensitive to provide reliable or accurate youth population and enrolment forecasts.

    For additional information see 2020 LRFP – Chapter 4 Enrolment Forecasts

  • All projections are based on a set of assumptions that changes over time. The City does provide long-range aggregate population forecasts for large areas or the entire city from time to time.

    It would be feasible to make a long-range forecast of youth population and enrolment for the entire district-based on assumptions about birth rate and migration trends. There is a 25 year history of enrolment decline at VSB schools while the population of the City of Vancouver and UBC/UEL have grown steadily. The long-range forecast would show a continuation of the long-established trend of enrolment decline that mirrors the decline in youth population that Vancouver is experiencing.

    The District has 79 elementary, and 18 secondary school catchments. Detailed catchment level forecasting on a time horizon of longer than 10-15 years would lack both accuracy and reliability. The district mitigates uncertainty about the future through a capital planning process that emphasizes designing for flexibility and adaptability in facilities that will be in use for many decades.

  • Future areas of development, including the Jericho lands and UBC/UEL, have been taken into consideration as part of the recommendation to close QEA.

    The District is well positioned to foresee, adapt, and respond to increases in the youth population from any development in future decades.   

    For more details of how the District will accommodate future growth in these area, see Future Development

  • Based on the decline in demand, there are currently no plans to expand the French immersion program on the west side of Vancouver. The District will continue to maintain the program at its current level. This aligns with the Board approved, 2018 French Program Review which states the District should endeavour to “match the supply of French Immersion sites to levels of demand around the District”.

    More information is available on the program expansion page.

  • JQ and QEA are considered one French immersion program because QEA is the feeder school to JQ. That said, during the application process, families are given the option to advise if they prefer to attend JQ, QEA or either.  The following table shows the French immersion application for QEA/JQ.  

    Note: In 2022, all 65 families who opted to enroll at JQ/QEA as their first choice were offered a spot in the French immersion program.  

    Preference JQ QEA Blank - no choice Total 
    First-choice  45 20 0 65 
    Second-choice 25 14 1 40 
    Third-choice 32 5 4 41 

  • JQ has sufficient existing classroom space and outdoor space to accommodate all students from QEA. Based on enrolment forecasts, the school will not be overcrowded. To see how the school is currently utilized and how it will accommodate additional students if QEA closes, visit space use

    In the interest of ensuring student safety the District does not publicize school floor plans.

  • QEA is not prioritized for government funding for seismic upgrade in the 5 year capital plan submission. The District has 33 elementary schools that are at high seismic risk. The mandate of the Seismic Mitigation Program (SMP) is to provide sufficient seismically safe capacity to accommodate VSB enrolment as quickly and cost effectively as possible. The District does not anticipate that QEA will ever be prioritized or funded for a seismic upgrade under the mandate of the SMP. 

  • The annual cost per student to attend QEA is $11,288 (based on a 2019 analysis). This is approximately 40 per cent higher than the provincial enrollment allocation of $7,885 per student. This is a function of having to operate a free standing building and the staffing associated with it for 71 students. Although there are low student numbers the site still requires custodial staffing, supervision staff, office staff, and administrative staff. In addition, the low student numbers mean that it is not possible to create efficient class organizations for the assignment of teaching staff.

  • The District is seeking input on two possible locations for the K-3 French immersion program currently located at QEA as part of the public engagement.

    One option is to accommodate QEA students at JQ.   JQ was seismically upgraded in 2011.  The other option is to accommodate the QEA students at QE.  Both QE and QEA have the same seismic risk rating.  Increasing enrolment at QE may strengthen the rationale for a future seismic upgrade of QE.  Go to building information for more details.

  • Staff at QEA are employed by the District, not the school. Although staff assigned to QEA would lose their position at that site, in the event of a closure, they would continue to be employed by the Board and would be assigned to another District site.

    Over 90 per cent of the annual operating revenue is allocated to staff salaries and benefits. The closure of QEA would facilitate more efficient and effective use of staff because the total staff count in the District would be lowered. That said, it is important to note no staff would be terminated should the Board decide to close the school. The District loses a number staff to regular attrition annually for reasons such as retirement or relocation changes. Instead of replacing the full attrition rate, staff at the QEA site would fill those positions instead.

  • French immersion is a District choice program. Should the Board decide to close QEA, the number of French immersion cohorts throughout the District will remain the same. Even though JQ may intake two kindergarten cohorts instead of three in some years, the total number of cohorts admitted into westside French immersion schools will stay constant at seven cohorts per year.

  • The Ministry of Education relies on school districts to provide enrolment forecasts for to support both financial forecasting and capital planning. The Ministry does publish enrolment forecasts that are based on data collected through the census process every five years. Census data has been shown to be insufficiently sensitive to reliably and accurately forecast enrolment. The Ministry of Education does not publish catchment level enrolment forecasts. The District has a data sharing agreement with the City of Vancouver and works in collaboration with City planning staff regularly. The City does not have its own data sources for birth rates, youth population, or enrolment and relies on the District for this information. Further information on the enrolment forecasting is available from the 2020 Long Range Facilities Plan – Chapter 4. This chapter also provides information on how the District validates its enrolment forecasts.

RELOCATION OF THE PROGRAM, SHOULD THE BOARD DECIDE TO CLOSE QEA


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