Brand new Bedford schools 'busting at the seams,' say parents

Despite opening their doors less than a year ago, new schools in the rapidly growing community of Bedford, N.S., are due to exceed capacity by September, prompting the need for modular classrooms.

The Halifax Regional Centre for Education (HRCE) announced earlier this week it would be installing two modular structures containing 12 classrooms at the site of West Bedford School and West Bedford High School to help alleviate enrolment pressures.

Capacity at the two schools — which are on the same site in separate buildings — is 2,000 combined. Enrolment is currently at 1,795, with 121 of those students arriving since September, according to figures provided by HRCE.

But the student population is expected to balloon to around 2,100 by September and 2,300 by 2025.

Although the schools are currently under capacity, parents and local MLAs say overcrowding is already an issue.

Deborah Gilbert has six children who attend the schools — in Grades 3, 5, 6, 8 and two kids in Grade 10.

Gilbert said parents are frustrated. Most if not all of the students at West Bedford came from overcrowded schools, she said.

"Our school is busting at the seams and it's affecting the kids. Most of my kid's friends have stated that they wish they could go back to their old schools," said Gilbert in an interview.

One major issue is a lack of outdoor play space, she said — the playground is small and the field is too far away for the children to use during lunch or recess because there aren't enough staff to monitor them.

"When the kids are outside, I've driven past during those times and there's just kids standing around everywhere because there's nowhere to play," Gilbert said.

For that reason, she's confused as to where the modulars will be placed, and suspects it will further reduce outdoor space that's already in short supply.

Anette Goodwin, whose 10-year-old son is in Grade 5, echoed those concerns. 

Goodwin said she feels a strong sense of community in Bedford but that gets lost at West Bedford because of its size.

"It took so long to get this school in our community, and we were all looking forward to a community school. And it's a massive school with so many kids, so it just doesn't feel like a community school," she said.

"It's great to bring more people into our province. But as the population grows, there needs to be more infrastructure built along the way, not after the fact."

Both parents are disappointed and frustrated that modulars are already necessary, and feel other measures need to be considered, such as reviewing school boundaries and looking to other schools in the area that are not at capacity.

Bedford South MLA Braedon Clark saw the overcrowding issues first-hand when he toured the facility in January.

"At times, there are three to four classes in the gym at the same time. So it's really hard to be active and have fun when you have that many kids in a confined space," said Clark, who grew up in Bedford.

"The principal at West Bedford School was telling me that hardly a day goes by where a kid doesn't show up at the school to register. And of course they take the kids and they love the kids and they do their absolute best. But it's really challenging for them to accommodate that."

The Nova Scotia government announced last year that four new schools would be built in the Halifax Regional Municipality, but the exact locations and timelines have not been announced.

Clark said it's a no-brainer that one of those schools should be in Bedford.

"I don't care if it's in my riding or next door, but it's got to be somewhere in the general area to accommodate the growth, because kids can't learn well in that kind of environment and teachers have a really hard time teaching in that kind of environment as well," he said.

Hammonds Plains-Lucasville MLA Ben Jessome agreed.

"We need the government to commit to a new school or multiple new schools if that's what it takes, because we're one of the areas in the province that has significant population growth," said Jessome.

Halifax is one of the fastest-growing cities in Canada. The municipality's population has risen by 14 per cent over the past five years and that is expected to continue.

Education Minister Becky Druhan said Thursday that Public Works is in the process of acquiring land for future development for a variety of sectors including heath care and education, but the province isn't in a position yet to announce where the four new schools will be located.

Following a cabinet meeting, Druhan told reporters that modulars have been well-received by other school communities who have them.

"They're amazing educational environments," she said. "They're an annex to the existing educational space and teachers and students really, really, really enjoy them."

The request for the modulars was approved by the provincial Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, with the funding coming from a previously announced $40 million envelope for modular classrooms over the next several years.

HRCE said the modular structures are connected by hallways and are equipped with washrooms, heating, ventilation and technology.

"We are seeing growth throughout HRM and no area is growing faster than West Bedford," said HRCE spokesperson Lindsey Bunin by email. "Building modulars allow us to respond to enrolment growth quickly, and provide safe, comfortable learning spaces for students and staff."

It's not known yet how the modulars will be configured or where they will be placed, an HRCE official said in an email to the school community on Monday, but staff will be conducting site visits in the coming weeks.

When the HRCE makes changes to school boundaries, Bunin said, they hope to "provide stability" for at least three years.

 "The modulars for West Bedford allow us to maintain that consistency for families," she said.