Photo: Quinn Desilets · CC BY-SA 4.0Mixed results around Nelson: 7 high and 1 low of 13 schools in British Columbia
Best placed: St Joseph School and Chek-Abc. One of the 17 teaches in French, against 2% of schools in British Columbia. Its 3 km reach takes in 7 elementary schools, 2 secondary schools, 4 schools for every grade and 4 alternative or adult schools, all of Nelson’s schooling.
What stands out about Nelson’s schools
The strongest results
St Joseph School (all grades) posts the area’s strongest results: the top fifth in British Columbia. Results ↓
Every figure here sets the area’s schools beside the rest of its province.
How Nelson’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 A: 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) | 9 | 480 | 468 |
| Grade 4 numeracy (FSA score) | 9 | 501 | 472 |
| Grade 7 literacy (FSA score) | 6 | 490 | 467 |
| Grade 7 numeracy (FSA score) | 6 | 480 | 454 |
| First-time Grade 12 graduation | 3 | 95% | 91% |
Furthest from the provincial middle is Grade 4 numeracy: 501 here, against 472 in British Columbia. The area is ahead on 4 of 5 measures and behind on 0.
Every school’s results (13)
| School | Measure | Band |
|---|---|---|
| St Joseph SchoolAll grades | G4 literacy 535 · G4 numeracy 552 · G7 literacy 535 · G7 numeracy 557 | Top fifth |
| Chek-AbcAlternative or adult | G4 literacy 575 · G4 numeracy 603 · G7 literacy 499 · G7 numeracy 520 · Graduation masked | Top fifth |
| Nelson Waldorf SchoolAll grades | G4 literacy 523 · G4 numeracy 537 · G7 literacy 563 · G7 numeracy 508 | Top fifth |
| Blewett Elementary SchoolElementary | G4 literacy 507 · G4 numeracy 501 | Second fifth |
| Hume Elementary SchoolElementary | G4 literacy 480 · G4 numeracy 517 | Second fifth |
| L V Rogers SecondarySecondary | Graduation 95% | Second fifth |
| Mount Sentinel SecondaryElementary | G7 literacy 467 · G7 numeracy 452 · Graduation 98% | Second fifth |
| Brent Kennedy ElementaryElementary | G4 literacy 474 · G4 numeracy 496 | Middle fifth |
| Rosemont Elementary SchoolElementary | G4 literacy 473 · G4 numeracy 488 | Middle fifth |
| South Nelson ElementaryElementary | G4 literacy 461 · G4 numeracy 490 | Middle fifth |
| Secondaire de NelsonSecondary | Graduation 92% | Middle fifth |
| Trafalgar Middle SchoolElementary | G7 literacy 482 · G7 numeracy 431 | Middle fifth |
| WildflowerAll grades | G4 literacy 423 · G4 numeracy 458 · G7 literacy 319 · G7 numeracy 310 | 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 17 schools in and around Nelson 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 Nelson
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.
By name, in French: Secondaire de Nelson (SD 93 Conseil scolaire francophone).
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 Nelson’s schools
Each level’s schools by system: English and French public boards, independent and other schools.
By the system they belong to: English public 12, French-language 1 and independent 4.
The provincial school lists: each school’s board, language and Catholic or public status.
The 2 boards that run schools here
The boards and their schools here.
Among 2 boards, SD 8 Kootenay Lake leads with 12.
| Board | System | Schools |
|---|---|---|
| SD 8 Kootenay LakeBlewett, Brent Kennedy, Elev8 D.E.S.K., Hume, L V Rogers Secondary, Mount Sentinel Secondary, Reach, Rosemont … | English public | 12 |
| SD 93 Conseil scolaire francophoneSecondaire de Nelson | French public | 1 |
Boards and districts as the provincial lists name them.
How children get a place in Nelson
Independent schools
Independent schools here charge fees but receive some provincial funding if they meet its standards.
French-language schools
French-language boards admit the children of rights-holders under section 23 of the Charter (a parent whose first language is French, or who was schooled in French in Canada), and may admit others through an admissions committee.
The neighbourhood school
The neighbourhood school is the one the board designates for the address; choice beyond it depends on space.
The provinces’ education acts and the boards’ own admission policies; check with the board for a given address.
The 17 schools in and around Nelson
High schools within reach of Nelson
Secondary and all-grade schools within 15 km, by distance.
Within 15 km, families can reach 7 high schools: 3 independent, 2 English public and 2 French public. 0.5 km away, St Joseph School is the nearest.
| School | Board | System | Band | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Joseph SchoolAll grades | – | Independent | Top fifth | 0.5 km |
| WildflowerAll grades | SD 8 Kootenay Lake | English public | Bottom fifth | 0.6 km |
| L V Rogers SecondarySecondary | SD 8 Kootenay Lake | English public | Second fifth | 1.4 km |
| Secondaire de NelsonSecondary | SD 93 Conseil scolaire francophone | French public | Middle fifth | 1.4 km |
| Nelson Christian Community SchoolAll grades | – | Independent | – | 2 km |
| Nelson Waldorf SchoolAll grades | – | Independent | Top fifth | 5.2 km |
| des Sentiers-alpinsAll grades | SD 93 Conseil scolaire francophone | French public | – | 10 km |
Distances in a straight line from the town’s centre point.
Alternative, adult and other schools around Nelson
Other schooling here: online learning through Chek-Abc and Elev8 D.E.S.K.; alternative programs at Reach and Sequoia Centre. Their cards ↑
The kinds as the provincial lists give them (alternative, adult and continuing education, online, provincial schools).
Towns its size in British Columbia
Places of about the same size and their schools in or within 3 km, largest first.
| Town | Population | Schools | French | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Granville Entertainment District | 19,125 | 42 | 0 | 0.4 km |
| … | ||||
| Prince Rupert | 12,903 | 9 | 0 | 0.5 km |
| View Royal | 12,795 | 35 | 2 | 2.9 km |
| Saltspring Island | 12,429 | 5 | 0 | 0.5 km |
| Summerland | 12,343 | 6 | 0 | 2.4 km |
| Nelson | 12,126 | 17 | 1 | 0.5 km |
| Provinceton | 11,625 | 38 | 0 | 1.4 km |
| Sechelt | 11,558 | 8 | 2 | 0.4 km |
| Williams Lake | 11,462 | 12 | 0 | 0.6 km |
| Coldstream | 11,380 | 16 | 0 | 3.3 km |
| … | ||||
| Lochdale | 7,463 | 36 | 0 | 0.8 km |
More schools than here: 41 of the 75 others. A school in French is nearby in 22 towns of 76.
Populations from Statistics Canada; schools from the provincial lists, in or within 3 km of each town.
Schools in the towns around Nelson
Each town’s schools in or within 3 km of its outline; distances as the crow flies.
| Town | Schools | French | Catholic or independent | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nelson | 17 | 1 | 4 | 0.5 km |
| Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay 3.2 km | 18 | 2 | 4 | 3.1 km |
| Electoral Area F, Central Kootenay 4.8 km | 16 | 2 | 4 | 3.5 km |
Next door, Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay counts 18 schools, more than any other neighbour.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The kinds of school. Middle and junior high schools count as secondary when they start at Grade 7 or later, elementary otherwise.
- Which schools count. The page takes in schools within Nelson and up to 3 km past its boundary, so a school just over the line is still here.
- Boards and systems. Public schools belong to English and French-language boards (or districts); independent schools run themselves.
- The year. The province’s 2025/26 list.
- Bands, not ranks. Each result is placed in a fifth of BC’s schools on the same measure; a school’s band averages its fifths. BC masks small groups and counts resident students only, so no school is ranked to the place.
- What isn’t here. Inspection reports with ratings don’t exist here, and the lists give enrolment for one year at most.
Questions about schools in Nelson
Which boards run the schools in Nelson?
SD 8 Kootenay Lake (12) and SD 93 Conseil scolaire francophone (1), with each one’s schools in brackets.
How do I get a place at a school in Nelson?
Contact the board: it names the school for your address and takes the registration.
How many schools are there in Nelson?
Inside the town there are 12; another 5 sit within 3 km.
Is there a French-language school in Nelson?
Yes, schooling in French is at Secondaire de Nelson.
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).