Major Capital Programs
School Expansion Program (EXP)
The VSB reviews its current and projected long-term enrolment demand and compares it against its existing school capacities on an annual basis. It analyzes the long-term enrolment needs across Vancouver and identifies areas where additional capacity is needed. Forecasts incorporate factors such as where students live, birth rates, migration patterns, housing developments, and geography.
When sustained enrolment pressures are identified, such as in the Downtown and Central regions of the District, the VSB then identifies and prioritizes requests for capital funding for capacity expansion. Potential projects for capital funding are weighted and ranked to consider factors like strategic priorities, expansion areas, possibilities for school replacement, and reconciliation considerations. The key objectives include:
- support education programming opportunities;
- enable students to attend their catchment school; and
- ensure all students attend seismically safe schools.
The VSB then includes the expanded school capacity of the identified high priority projects in its annual Five-Year Capital Plan Submission. This is the mechanism by which the VSB applies for funding from MECC to support its highest priority projects. MECC requires that Major Capital Plans be approved by Board resolutions prior to submission to the Ministry annually each June. The Ministry of Education and Child Care will inform school districts of supported project(s) through the Capital Plan Response Letter the following spring. You can find out more about this process and see the most recent capital plan submissions here: Five-Year Capital Plan Submission.
There are a number of limitations to securing project funding to satisfy the enrolment demand identified in high growth areas of Downtown and the Central regions of Vancouver:
- The VSB must compete for its long-term capital funding allocations with school districts across the Province.
- Land costs and availability constraints are requiring the VSB to be more creative with mixed uses in its urban sites; however, site complexities increase the costs of construction.
- There are financial pressures from existing school expansion projects due to rising costs of materials, labour, and financing.
- Enrolment is uneven across the City and the VSB is required to balance school needs and capacities across the District.
Through its capital program planning process, the VSB has undertaken several capital projects to increase elementary school capacities in Downtown and the surrounding areas in recent years:
- šxʷwəq̓ʷəθət Crosstown Elementary School added 462 operating capacity in the International Village area when it was completed in 2017.
- The new cəw̓as h’elxwá7elch Skwuláw̓txw Seaside Elementary school will provide a net increase of 193 elementary school capacity in the Downtown West area beginning this September.
- The new seismically safe Henry Hudson Elementary in Kitsilano provides overflow relief on enrolment pressure Downtown with an addition of 145 spaces, for a total operating capacity of 535 students.
- Once completed in 2029, a new school in Olympic Village with an operating capacity of 630, will provide further relief on enrolment pressures in and around Downtown. It had been identified as a top priority through the VSB’s capital submission since 2006, and MECC committed funding to support the new school in 2024.
- When the proposed Lord Roberts Annex replacement school is constructed, it will ultimately right-size the enrolment capacity demands in Downtown.
Seismic Mitigation Program (SMP)
There is an active seismic enhancement project at Grenfell Elementary, which is expected to be completed prior to the start of the 2026-2027 school year. Information
- A funding approval announcement was made on July 10, 2023.
- For status of the project and estimated completion, please click here.
- A public information session was held at Grenfell Elementary Gymnasium from 2:30pm to 5:30pm on September 21, 2023.
- Public Information Session boards
- Feedback was gathered through an online survey.
- A summary of the Grenfell Seismic Upgrade project information can be found of the project fact sheet.
Key Features
- Ensures students attend seismically safe schools as quickly as possible.
- Building components including light fixtures, mechanical, and electrical systems will be replaced where impacted by seismic work.
Temporary Accommodation
- During construction, Grenfell students are attending school at the South Hill Swing Site.
Contact Information
- Parents and staff may direct questions to their principal.
- The principal is a member of the seismic project team.
Further Information on the project can be found here:
A list of VSB seismic mitigation (SMP) projects can be found by following this link: