Photo: Ruth Hartnup from Vancouver, Canada · CC BY 2.0The 2 schools of Cumberland: 1 elementary school and 1 school for every grade
All of them belong to SD 71 Comox Valley. On results, 0 of 2 tested schools are in the upper two fifths in British Columbia.
How Cumberland’s schools do on BC’s assessments
The Foundation Skills Assessment in Grades 4 and 7 and first-time graduation: each school against every school in BC.
Its School Grade is C−: it compares these results with the other towns of the province.
The area’s schools by fifth of the province
Each school’s band is the average of its measures’ fifths. The mark shows an even fifth of the area’s schools.
| Measure | Schools | Middle here | British Columbia |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 4 literacy (FSA score) | 2 | 447 | 468 |
| Grade 4 numeracy (FSA score) | 2 | 426 | 472 |
| Grade 7 literacy (FSA score) | 1 | 443 | 467 |
| Grade 7 numeracy (FSA score) | 1 | 444 | 454 |
Furthest from the provincial middle is Grade 4 numeracy: 426 here, against 472 in British Columbia. On 0 of 4 measures the area beats the provincial middle; on 3 it trails.
Every school’s results (2)
| School | Measure | Band |
|---|---|---|
| Cumberland Community SchoolAll grades | G4 literacy 464 · G4 numeracy 431 · G7 literacy 443 · G7 numeracy 444 | Fourth fifth |
| Arden ElementaryElementary | G4 literacy 430 · G4 numeracy 422 | Bottom fifth |
BC Ministry of Education and Child Care: FSA 2021/22 to 2025/26 (the latest year with a value) and first-time Grade 12 graduation; masked where groups are small; resident students only. Open Government Licence – British Columbia.
Where the 2 schools in and around Cumberland are
Each pin is a school, coloured by the system that runs it, sized by its students where the province publishes them.
Points from the provincial lists.
Schooling in English and French around Cumberland
English, French and other languages of instruction, beside the mix in British Columbia.
The mark on each bar is the share of schools in British Columbia.
Not one teaches in French.
Section 23 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms gives French-speaking parents the right to French-language schooling for their children, through the French-language boards.
Who runs Cumberland’s schools
Each level’s schools by system: English and French public boards, independent and other schools.
They belong to one system, every one English public.
The provincial school lists: each school’s board, language and Catholic or public status.
How children get a place in Cumberland
The neighbourhood school
Where a family lives sets the school: each board draws a catchment around every one of its schools, and a child living inside it has a place there. Other schools take children from outside when they have room.
The provinces’ education acts and the boards’ own admission policies; check with the board for a given address.
The 2 schools in and around Cumberland
High schools within reach of Cumberland
Every secondary school within 15 km of the town, nearest first.
Within 15 km, families can reach 4 high schools: 4 English public. 0.5 km away, Cumberland Community School is the nearest.
| School | Board | System | Band | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cumberland Community SchoolAll grades | SD 71 Comox Valley | English public | Fourth fifth | 0.5 km |
| Georges P. Vanier SecondarySecondary | SD 71 Comox Valley | English public | Middle fifth | 9.8 km |
| Ecole Secondaire Mark R Isfeld SecondarySecondary | SD 71 Comox Valley | English public | Second fifth | 10 km |
| Highland SecondarySecondary | SD 71 Comox Valley | English public | Second fifth | 11 km |
Distances in a straight line from the town’s centre point.
Towns its size in British Columbia
Similar-sized towns and their schools within 3 km, by population.
| Town | Population | Schools | French | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holdom | 7,976 | 35 | 0 | 1.3 km |
| … | ||||
| Gibsons | 5,090 | 6 | 0 | 0.6 km |
| Cobble Hill | 5,074 | 8 | 0 | 4 km |
| Electoral Area C, North Okanagan | 5,029 | 20 | 0 | 2.4 km |
| Electoral Area F, Cariboo | 5,016 | 6 | 0 | 25 km |
| Cumberland | 4,974 | 2 | 0 | 0.5 km |
| Electoral Area F, North Okanagan | 4,969 | 7 | 0 | 6.1 km |
| Electoral Area D, Columbia-Shuswap | 4,829 | 6 | 0 | 7.3 km |
| Electoral Area H, Nanaimo | 4,815 | 2 | 0 | 19 km |
| Electoral Area D, Fraser-Fort George | 4,802 | 3 | 0 | 10 km |
| … | ||||
| Bainbridge | 3,015 | 32 | 0 | 2.5 km |
More schools are within reach in 90 of the 101 other towns. In 23 of the 102, at least one school teaches in French.
Populations from Statistics Canada; schools from the provincial lists, in or within 3 km of each town.
Schools in the towns around Cumberland
Schools in or within 3 km of each neighbouring town; distances in a straight line.
| Town | Schools | French | Catholic or independent | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cumberland | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 km |
| Courtenay 8.8 km | 20 | 1 | 1 | 1.8 km |
| Comox 10 km | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0.9 km |
| Electoral Area A, Comox Valley 11 km | 11 | 0 | 1 | 12 km |
| Electoral Area B (Lazo North), Comox Valley 14 km | 21 | 1 | 1 | 3.7 km |
| Electoral Area C (Puntledge - Black Creek), Comox Valley 18 km | 15 | 0 | 0 | 9.6 km |
21 schools make Electoral Area B (Lazo North), Comox Valley the best supplied neighbour.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The kinds of school. Schools are grouped by what they teach: elementary, secondary, every grade, and the alternative, adult and online programs.
- Which schools count. A 3 km band around Cumberland’s outline is included, as it is for every town on the site.
- What isn’t here. Inspection reports with ratings don’t exist here, and the lists give enrolment for one year at most.
- Bands, not ranks. BC publishes average FSA scores and graduation rates, masking small groups, so the page gives fifths, not ranks.
- Boards and systems. Two systems share the province, English and French, each run by its own board or district.
- The year. The province’s school list, 2025/26.
Questions about schools in Cumberland
Is there a French-language school in Cumberland?
No, none within 3 km of Cumberland; ask the French-language board for the nearest.
How do I get a place at a school in Cumberland?
Start with the board for the system you want; your address sets the school.
Sources: BC Ministry of Education and Child Care, K-12 school list 2025/26 (Open Government Licence – British Columbia) · map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).