While students have been out of school for the summer, many staff across VSB have been hard at work preparing for the 2025-2026 school year. The facilities team has taken advantage of the decreased traffic at schools to complete hundreds of projects. Some highlights include:

Henry Hudson - The new Henry Hudson elementary school is nearing completion. This summer, work has been underway on all outdoor areas including preparations for a new playground that is expected to be ready for students in September. The new building that opened last year, along with the addition currently under construction, are seismically safe and include child care space for 65 children aged 0-5.

New School at Coal Harbour – This significant project, expected to be complete later this fall will add much needed capacity for the growing demand in the downtown core. The building will feature an elementary school for 340 students, a child care centre for 65 children aged 0-5, out-of-school-care for 69 children and 60 affordable housing units.  

Britannia Secondary – The Britannia Secondary basketball court experienced some major revitalization thanks to non-profit organizations Vancouver Firefighters Charity and Buckets and Borders. Courts at Britannia now showcase a colourful painted mural featuring a motif of the school’s Bruin. 

Along with these highlights, other upgrades include sanding and refinishing gymnasium floors, upgrading EV chargers, expanding bike and scooter infrastructure, enhancing accessibility at various locations, improving fences and drainage at many sites, adding and rejuvenating outdoor learning spaces and so much more! 

“Repairs and routine services may not always be flashy, but they undoubtedly contribute to students’ educational experience and well-being. There is a tremendous amount of behind-the-scenes work needed to maintain our aging facilities,” says Jessie Gresley-Jones, executive director of facilities. “The facilities team are incredibly skilled at managing our unique facilities and take great pride in their work which is integral to creating positive learning environments for students."

With 111 schools to maintain (including several very old buildings) the facilities team has their work cut out for them in July and August to ensure schools are ready to welcome students and staff to a new school year. A big thank you to the facilities team for continually working to improve school environments at VSB!