New year, new school: Northwest London elementary school opens

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Getting to school on Monday was a different experience for 11-year-old Sophie Byers. 

Gone was the 25-minute bus ride from her home to classes, replaced instead by a 10-minute walk she described simply as “great.” 

Also new was her entire school. 

Byers, who until last month attended the overcrowded St. Catherine of Siena Catholic elementary school, was among close to 500 pupils who on Monday began the second half of the school year at the new St. Gabriel Catholic elementary school on Buroak Drive in northwest London. 

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The decision to relocate hundreds of pupils and staff mid-year is a first for the London District Catholic school board, but one that underscores the pressures the board faces as the fastest-growing Catholic board in the province.

“You have to kind of realize that this grouping of students, along with those at St. Catherine of Siena, have been in the same building for four or five years, so there were nearly 1,000 students over there,” said Geoff Moore, principal at St. Gabriel, located near Hyde Park and Sunningdale roads. 

“There were 17 portables on site. We had two classes in the library and one class in the staff room combined between the two schools, so we needed to relieve the pressures of that. We wanted to get into this building as soon as we possibly could.” 

The effects of the relocation were being felt immediately, Moore said. 

Like Byers, between 50 and 60 per cent of pupils now are able to walk to class, he said.   

On Monday, as pupils toured the new school, the mood at St. Gabriel was one of excitement and joy akin to a first day of class, not only for students but also for staff. 

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“I think it’s really great for the kids to be close to peers that aren’t necessarily in their class,” said Grade 2/3 teacher Nicole McGeever.  

“And I think it’s great for us staff, as well, to be in one building where we all get to know each other, and we can kind of collaborate together as well.” 

Though construction crews were still on-site Monday putting the finishing touches to St. Gabriel, including finishing the school’s library and gym, Moore said the portables at St. Catherine are now closed and will be distributed among other Catholic schools across the region. 

And by the looks of it, they will be needed. 

During the past five years, the Catholic school board has seen its student population grow by about 30 per cent, adding close to 6,400 students since 2020, or nearly enough to fill about 20 elementary schools. 

Even at the just-opened St. Gabriel, which cost about $22.3 million to complete, two portables already were being used. 

“We’re managing the growth the best that we can,” Moore said. “If you look around this neighbourhood . . . there’s a bunch of sold signs and empty lots. It’s going to keep growing and growing.”   

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Daryl Diegel, the board’s executive manager of capital projects, said finding enough space to properly accommodate students and staff is one of the biggest challenges facing the board. 

The board, for instance, has plans to begin the tendering process for two new elementary schools – one in Komoka and one in northeast London – later this year. 

The board also has applied to the Ministry of Education for funding for four 650-student elementary schools and two high schools, one of which also would be located in the city’s north end and have capacity for 2,000 students. 

“Typically, in the past, the London District Catholic school board was known for building smaller schools,” Diegel said.  

“St. Gabriel was built as a 500-student school, but you can see from the rapid and explosive growth, that those numbers are starting to increase.” 

jjuha@postmedia.com

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