Photo: Michal Klajban · CC BY-SA 4.0Saltspring Island’s 3 schools with results spread wide in British Columbia, 0 in the top two fifths and 0 in the bottom two
Taken together, Saltspring Island and its 3 km edge hold 2 elementary schools, 1 secondary school and 2 alternative or adult schools.
How Saltspring Island’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 B+: 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 | 476 | 468 |
| Grade 4 numeracy (FSA score) | 2 | 503 | 472 |
| Grade 7 literacy (FSA score) | 2 | 455 | 467 |
| Grade 7 numeracy (FSA score) | 2 | 447 | 454 |
| First-time Grade 12 graduation | 1 | 90% | 91% |
The widest gap is on Grade 4 numeracy, where the area’s schools reach 503 against 472 in British Columbia. 1 measures above the provincial middle, 0 below, out of 5.
Every school’s results (3)
| School | Measure | Band |
|---|---|---|
| Salt Spring ElementaryElementary | G4 literacy 459 · G4 numeracy 494 · G7 literacy 467 · G7 numeracy 467 | Middle fifth |
| Fernwood ElementaryElementary | G4 literacy 492 · G4 numeracy 512 · G7 literacy 444 · G7 numeracy 426 | Middle fifth |
| Gulf Islands SecondarySecondary | Graduation 90% | Middle 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 5 schools in and around Saltspring Island are
A pin for every school, its colour the system it belongs to.
Points from the provincial lists.
Schooling in English and French around Saltspring Island
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.
For schooling in French, families look further afield.
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 Saltspring Island’s schools
Each level’s schools by system: English and French public boards, independent and other schools.
No mix of systems here: every one English public.
The provincial school lists: each school’s board, language and Catholic or public status.
How children get a place in Saltspring Island
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 5 schools in and around Saltspring Island
High schools within reach of Saltspring Island
Every secondary school within 15 km of the town, nearest first.
Counting out to 15 km, there are 2: 1 English public and 1 independent. 0.4 km away, Gulf Islands Secondary is the nearest.
| School | Board | System | Band | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gulf Islands SecondarySecondary | SD 64 Gulf Islands | English public | Middle fifth | 0.4 km |
| Queen of Angels SchoolAll grades | – | Independent | Fourth fifth | 14 km |
Distances in a straight line from the town’s centre point.
Alternative, adult and other schools around Saltspring Island
The area also has online learning through 64GO; alternative programs at Phoenix Place. Their cards ↑
The kinds as the provincial lists give them (alternative, adult and continuing education, online, provincial schools).
Towns its size in British Columbia
Towns of a similar population, with their schools in or within 3 km; described, not ranked.
| Town | Population | Schools | French | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Port Alberni | 19,671 | 13 | 1 | 1.2 km |
| … | ||||
| Aloha Estates | 13,194 | 25 | 0 | 2.2 km |
| North Saanich | 12,986 | 6 | 0 | 1 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 |
| … | ||||
| Electoral Area A, Nanaimo | 7,825 | 7 | 0 | 1.9 km |
In 69 of the 76 others the count is higher. Of the 77, 24 offer a French-language school.
Populations from Statistics Canada; schools from the provincial lists, in or within 3 km of each town.
Schools in the towns around Saltspring Island
Schools in or within 3 km of each neighbouring town; distances in a straight line.
| Town | Schools | French | Catholic or independent | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saltspring Island | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 km |
| North Cowichan 14 km | 22 | 1 | 4 | 2.8 km |
| Cowichan Bay 16 km | 16 | 1 | 5 | 2.6 km |
| Cowichan 17 km | 19 | 1 | 5 | 2 km |
| Duncan 17 km | 16 | 1 | 4 | 1.1 km |
| Southern Gulf Islands 17 km | 8 | 0 | 0 | 4.5 km |
| Electoral Area E, Cowichan Valley 18 km | 16 | 1 | 5 | 2.4 km |
Among the neighbours, North Cowichan has 22, the most.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. Every school inside Saltspring Island’s outline or within 3 km of it, the rule used across the site.
- The kinds of school. Elementary schools run from kindergarten to Grade 6 or 8, secondary ones to Grade 12; some cover every grade, and alternative, adult and online schools are listed apart.
- The year. The open list of 2025/26.
- Boards and systems. English and French boards share the province, each with its own schools; there are no separate Catholic boards here.
- Bands, not ranks. The fifths are of schools, not students: a small school counts as much as a large one.
- What isn’t here. Provinces don’t grade schools by inspection; class sizes and enrolment over time aren’t in the open lists.
Questions about schools in Saltspring Island
How do I get a place at a school in Saltspring Island?
Register with the board that runs the school: the address decides the designated school in each system, and the board can say which one it is.
Is there a French-language school in Saltspring Island?
Not in or within 3 km of Saltspring Island; the French-language board can name the nearest.
How many schools are there in Saltspring Island?
Every one of them, 5, is inside the town.
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).