Photo: Edwin Lester Brittain · CC BY-SA 4.0The nearest high school to Pontiac is 7.1 km away
The town’s own schools, within 3 km, are 4 elementary schools. 2 of the 4 teach in English, against 10% of schools in Quebec. The schools grade is left out in Quebec, as the ministry publishes its success rates by school service centre, not school by school.
What stands out about Pontiac’s schools
Several boards
3 boards run schools in the area: Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais, Commission scolaire Western Québec and Ottawa CSB. The boards ↓
Each finding compares the town’s schools with every school in its province.
High schools within reach of Pontiac
Every secondary school within 15 km of the town, nearest first.
The one high school within 15 km is West Carleton Secondary School, at 7 km.
| School | Board | System | Students | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Carleton Secondary SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | Ottawa-Carleton DSB | English public | 1,290 | 7 km |
Distances in a straight line from the town’s centre point.
Schooling in English and French around Pontiac
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.
Commission scolaire Western Québec and Ottawa CSB runs the English-language ones: École primaire Onslow and St Michael (Fitzroy) Elementary School.
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.
Where the 4 schools in and around Pontiac are
Every school as a pin, coloured by system; each opens its own page.
Points from the provincial lists.
Who runs Pontiac’s schools
Each level’s schools by system: the French service centres, the English boards, independent and other schools.
The split by system: French service centres 2 and English boards 2.
The provincial school lists: each school’s board, language and Catholic or public status.
The 3 boards that run schools here
Each board’s schools in the area, largest first.
The French service centre and the English board cover the same territory, each with its own schools.
| Board | System | Schools | Students |
|---|---|---|---|
| Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouaisde la Vallée-des-Voyageurs (Notre-Dame-de-la-Joie), de la Vallée-des-Voyageurs (Sainte-Marie) | French public | 2 | – |
| Commission scolaire Western Québecprimaire Onslow | English public | 1 | – |
| Ottawa CSBSt Michael (Fitzroy) | English Catholic | 1 | 175 |
Boards and districts as the provincial lists name them.
How children get a place in Pontiac
English schools in Quebec
Bill 101 limits English public schools to eligible children, mostly those with a parent schooled in English in Canada.
The neighbourhood school
Attendance zones do the sorting here. Inside the zone a child is in; outside it, the answer turns on how full the school is.
The provinces’ education acts and the boards’ own admission policies; check with the board for a given address.
The 4 schools in and around Pontiac
Towns its size in Quebec
Similar-sized towns and their schools within 3 km, by population.
| Town | Population | Schools | Students | English | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notre-Dame-de-Grâces | 10,204 | 59 | — | 14 | 1.1 km |
| … | |||||
| Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde | 6,671 | 60 | — | 14 | 0.9 km |
| Centre | 6,627 | 35 | — | 1 | 1.5 km |
| Notre-Dame-du-Mont-Carmel | 6,613 | 5 | — | 0 | 7.6 km |
| Mont-Joli | 6,492 | 5 | — | 0 | 0.4 km |
| Pontiac | 6,490 | 4 | 175 | 2 | 7.1 km |
| Port-Cartier | 6,436 | 6 | — | 1 | 0.5 km |
| Pointe-Calumet | 6,427 | 9 | — | 0 | 4.8 km |
| Princeville | 6,400 | 8 | — | 0 | 0.4 km |
| Hautes-Plaines | 6,353 | 29 | — | 3 | 1.5 km |
| … | |||||
| Danville | 3,944 | 6 | — | 1 | 5.3 km |
94 of the 139 others have more schools in reach. In 62 of the 140, at least one school teaches in English.
Populations from Statistics Canada; schools from the provincial lists, in or within 3 km of each town.
Schools in the towns around Pontiac
Schools in or within 3 km of each neighbouring town; distances in a straight line.
| Town | Schools | English | Catholic or independent | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pontiac | 4 | 2 | 1 | 7.1 km |
| Dunrobin 7.4 km | 19 | 10 | 3 | 4 km |
| Fitzroy 12 km | 9 | 8 | 3 | 9.6 km |
| Chelsea 14 km | 26 | 3 | 2 | 8.1 km |
| Des Explorateurs 14 km | 26 | 6 | 1 | 0.9 km |
| Brookside - Briarbrook - Morgans Grant 16 km | 20 | 17 | 10 | 3.5 km |
| Carp 16 km | 15 | 13 | 8 | 8.5 km |
The busiest neighbour is Chelsea, with 26 schools.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The kinds of school. Each school is elementary, secondary or all-grade by the grades it teaches; alternative, adult and online programs sit in a group of their own.
- Which schools count. The area is Pontiac plus a 3 km margin around it, measured from its census outline.
- Boards and systems. The French service centre and the English board each cover the whole territory with their own schools.
- The year. The open list of 2025-26.
- What isn’t here. What no open list gives: inspection grades, several years of enrolment, and Ontario’s private schools.
- One school, two buildings. Buildings are listed separately in Quebec, so some schools appear twice.
Questions about schools in Pontiac
Which boards run the schools in Pontiac?
By number of schools: Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l'Outaouais (2), Commission scolaire Western Québec (1) and Ottawa CSB (1).
How do I get a place at a school in Pontiac?
Go to the service centre for your area, or to the English school board if the child is eligible.
How many schools are there in Pontiac?
3 in the town, 1 just beyond it, within 3 km.
Is there a English-language school in Pontiac?
Yes: École primaire Onslow and St Michael (Fitzroy) Elementary School, the English-language schools here.
Sources: Ministère de l’Éducation du Québec, school locations (CC BY 4.0) · 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).