New Westminster Schools takes steps to manage short-term capacity issues in the following ways:
- Reviewing how space is used at each school to maximize efficiency.
- Planning/completing interior renovations at existing schools to create more classroom space.
- Re-examining programming requirements, including international education.
- Creating a three-year portable placement strategy for all school sites.
The district reviews short-term capacity strategies annually to help make decisions for the upcoming school year based on enrollment projections. These decisions include purchasing portables or interior school renovations in the spring before September.
The Long Range Facilities Plan
New Westminster Schools’ Long Range Facilities Plan is a strategy aimed at addressing the current school capacity crisis. The Board of Education approved a new iteration of the plan in October 2023 and is committed to refreshing the document every few years to make sure it aligns with enrollment demands.
One of the plan’s major goals is to create recommendations to expand school infrastructure so the district can accommodate more students. These recommendations are used in district requests to the Ministry of Education and Child Care for support (e.g. financial). Recent completed and upcoming capital projects to future-proof existing schools include:
- The seismic replacement of Skwo:wech Elementary School (formerly Richard McBride Elementary), which opened in 2022.
- A new state-of-the-art building that is now the new home of New Westminster Secondary School.
- A coming expansion to Queen Elizabeth Elementary School that will add more classroom spaces and allow grade five students to return to the building.