pacific

École du Pacifique

Sechelt

École du Pacifique and the Chatelech Francophone Programme are committed to offering educational programs and services that favour and encourage the development of cultural identity and the success of francophone learners on the Sunshine Coast.

The CSF and the Fédération des parents francophones’ claim before the Supreme Court of British Columbia:

Obtain a new kindergarten to grade 7 school on a site large enough to allow for future enrolment growth.

Court’s decision:

According to the judge, francophone parents in Sechelt have the right to a homogeneous school for their children with elementary facilities that are substantively equivalent to those of the majority schools that are comparable in size. This right is not currently being respected in Sechelt.

The implementation of section 23 of the Charter in Sechelt will be supported by the order requiring the provincial government to establish a separate long-term funding envelope for the CSF’s capital projects, by the order requiring the provincial government to help the CSF acquire sites to meet the CSF’s needs, and by the order requiring the provincial government to fund the CSF’s leases where a program is offered in leased space. The implementation of section 23 in Sechelt may also be aided by the order for damages regarding the decade-long freeze of funding for the CSF’s transportation budget.

The CSF and the Fédération des parents francophones will ask that the Court of Appeal recognize that the Francophone community in Sechelt has an immediate right to a homogeneous school that is substantively equivalent to the competing English-language schools (and not just to those of similar size).

Current project

The CSF is working with local authorities to acquire property to build a new school (K to 7) as soon as possible.