Photo: P199 · CC BY-SA 3.0Chelsea’s schools come under 3 different boards
Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais has 13 of them, and Centre de services scolaire des Draveurs and Commission scolaire Western Québec share the others. Schooling in English is on offer at 3 of 26; in Quebec, 10% of schools teach in it. Taken together, Chelsea and its 3 km edge hold 19 elementary schools, 4 secondary schools and 3 schools for every grade.
3 boards, school by school
The boards and their schools here.
The French service centre and the English board cover the same territory, each with its own schools.
| Board | System | Schools |
|---|---|---|
| Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'OutaouaisCôte-du-Nord, Saint-Paul, de l'Amérique-Française, des Deux-Ruisseaux, des services spécialisés, du Dôme, du Grand-Boisé (Grand-Boisé - Annexe, du), du Grand-Boisé (Grand-Boisé, du) … | French public | 13 |
| Centre de services scolaire des DraveursPolyvalente Le Carrefour, Le Petit Prince, Le Tremplin, Massé, Polyvalente de l'Érablière, de Touraine (Carrefour (édifice primaire George-Étienne-Cartier)), de Touraine (Touraine, de), du Vallon | French public | 8 |
| Commission scolaire Western QuébecIntermédiaire Hadley, primaire Chelsea, Philemon Wright | English public | 3 |
Boards and districts as the provincial lists name them.
Where the 26 schools in and around Chelsea are
Every school as a pin, coloured by system; each opens its own page.
Points from the provincial lists.
Schooling in English and French around Chelsea
Each school by its language of instruction, with the share in Quebec marked.
The mark on each bar is the share of schools in Quebec.
By name, in English: École primaire Chelsea, École Intermédiaire Hadley and École secondaire Philemon Wright (Commission scolaire Western Québec).
Quebec’s Charter of the French Language sends most children to French-language schools; English public schooling is for children who hold a certificate of eligibility.
Who runs Chelsea’s schools
Each level’s schools by system: the French service centres, the English boards, independent and other schools.
By system, they split: French service centres 21, English boards 3 and independent 2.
The provincial school lists: each school’s board, language and Catholic or public status.
How children get a place in Chelsea
The neighbourhood school
Ask the board first. It holds the enrolment list and points each street to its own school; out-of-area requests go ahead only with space to spare.
English schools in Quebec
A certificate of eligibility opens the English public schools; most children qualify for French-language schools only.
Independent schools
Admission to an independent school is by its own rules; fees apply, lowered by partial provincial funding.
The provinces’ education acts and the boards’ own admission policies; check with the board for a given address.
The 26 schools in and around Chelsea
High schools within reach of Chelsea
The high schools a family here could reach, within 15 km.
Counting out to 15 km, there are 20: 14 French public, 4 English public and 2 independent. First by distance comes Collège Saint-Alexandre de la Gatineau, at 8 km.
| School | Board | System | Away |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collège Saint-Alexandre de la GatineauSecondary | – | Independent | 8 km |
| École Polyvalente de l'ÉrablièreSecondary | Centre de services scolaire des Draveurs | French public | 8.6 km |
| École secondaire Mont-BleuAll grades | Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais | French public | 9.7 km |
| École des services spécialisésAll grades | Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais | French public | 10 km |
| École secondaire Philemon WrightSecondary | Commission scolaire Western Québec | English public | 10 km |
| École Intermédiaire HadleySecondary | Commission scolaire Western Québec | English public | 10 km |
| École secondaire de la CitéAll grades | Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais | French public | 12 km |
| Collège Nouvelles FrontièresSecondary | – | Independent | 12 km |
| Polyvalente Le CarrefourSecondary | Centre de services scolaire des Draveurs | French public | 13 km |
| École secondaire du VersantSecondary | Centre de services scolaire des Draveurs | French public | 13 km |
All 20 secondary schools
| School | Board | System | Away |
|---|---|---|---|
| École secondaire D'Arcy McGeeSecondary | Commission scolaire Western Québec | English public | 13 km |
| École Intermédiaire SymmesSecondary | Commission scolaire Western Québec | English public | 13 km |
| École du Nouveau-MondeAll grades | Centre de services scolaire des Draveurs | French public | 13 km |
| École du Nouveau-MondeAll grades | Centre de services scolaire des Draveurs | French public | 13 km |
| École du Nouveau-MondeAll grades | Centre de services scolaire des Draveurs | French public | 13 km |
| École secondaire de l'ÎleAll grades | Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais | French public | 14 km |
| École Saint-Jean-BoscoAll grades | Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais | French public | 14 km |
| École des services spécialisésAll grades | Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais | French public | 14 km |
| École des services spécialisésAll grades | Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais | French public | 14 km |
| École secondaire Grande-RivièreAll grades | Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais | French public | 15 km |
Distances in a straight line from the town’s centre point.
Towns its size in Quebec
Towns of a similar population, with their schools in or within 3 km; described, not ranked.
| Town | Population | Schools | English | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vieux-Limoilou | 14,347 | 109 | 3 | 0.4 km |
| … | ||||
| Saint-Apollinaire | 9,218 | 5 | 0 | 6.8 km |
| Saint-Robert | 9,186 | 75 | 18 | 1.9 km |
| Sainte-Brigitte-de-Laval | 9,084 | 3 | 0 | 13 km |
| Coaticook | 9,027 | 8 | 0 | 2.4 km |
| Chelsea | 8,998 | 26 | 3 | 8.1 km |
| Saint-Jean-Baptiste | 8,882 | 93 | 4 | 0.4 km |
| Delson | 8,802 | 27 | 3 | 1.7 km |
| Nicolet | 8,737 | 5 | 1 | 1.2 km |
| Saint-Philippe | 8,674 | 20 | 2 | 3.3 km |
| … | ||||
| Saint-Boniface | 5,405 | 14 | 1 | 6.2 km |
42 out of 141 comparable towns have more schools. Schooling in English is on hand in 83 of the 142.
Populations from Statistics Canada; schools from the provincial lists, in or within 3 km of each town.
Schools in the towns around Chelsea
For each nearby town, its schools in or within 3 km of its outline, with straight-line distances.
| Town | Schools | English | Catholic or independent | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chelsea | 26 | 3 | 2 | 8.1 km |
| Cantley 5.2 km | 11 | 1 | 2 | 6.9 km |
| Hautes-Plaines 8.5 km | 29 | 3 | 3 | 1.5 km |
| Les Rapides 8.7 km | 30 | 3 | 2 | 0.4 km |
| Mont-Bleu 11 km | 29 | 3 | 3 | 1 km |
| Du Plateau 12 km | 38 | 7 | 1 | 0.6 km |
| La Cité 12 km | 46 | 6 | 3 | 1.1 km |
Of the neighbours, La Cité counts the most schools: 46.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Boards and systems. The French service centre and the English board each cover the whole territory with their own schools.
- The year. As the province lists them in 2025-26.
- What isn’t here. Ontario’s private schools aren’t in the open list; no province publishes inspection grades.
- One school, two buildings. Quebec lists each school once per building, so a school with two buildings shows twice, its building named.
- 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. The area is Chelsea plus a 3 km margin around it, measured from its census outline.
Questions about schools in Chelsea
Which boards run the schools in Chelsea?
Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais (13), Centre de services scolaire des Draveurs (8) and Commission scolaire Western Québec (3), with each one’s schools in brackets.
How do I get a place at a school in Chelsea?
Register at the service centre; a school outside the area takes a child if it has room.
How many schools are there in Chelsea?
4 in the town, 22 just beyond it, within 3 km.
Is there a English-language school in Chelsea?
Yes, there are English-language schools: École primaire Chelsea, École Intermédiaire Hadley and École secondaire Philemon Wright.
Sources: Ministère de l’Éducation du Québec, school locations (CC BY 4.0) · Source note: the ministry publishes its success rates by school service centre, not school by school, so there’s no schools grade in Quebec. · 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).