Gym, library and staff room being used as classrooms at ‘overcrowded’ Durham school

It may be the start of a new school year but a reoccurring problem continues to impact students at a Whitby school.

That’s according to parents who say Fallingbrook Public School has been struggling to deal with overcrowding, and has resorted to makeshift classrooms inside the library, gymnasium, stage and even a staff room to accommodate an increase of students.

Raj Thukral, a parent with two kids attending the Whitby school, said the school is running out of time and room to adjust and accommodate for the growth.

“We just heard that a lot of students are being crammed in small classes, portables for that matter,” he said. “Space inside the school is running out too, there’s more students being placed in gyms and areas used for other activities in the school.”

The Durham District School Board said students have also been placed in seven existing portables, and that this is a temporary strategy to accommodate an increased student enrollment.

Kirsten May’s two children are both enrolled at the school. She said they dealt with the same issue of overcrowding and lack of planning from the school last year as well.

“It’s not just students in those classrooms that are being affected, it’s all the students at the school,” May said. “They don’t have access to the library until the portables arrive, they don’t have full access to the gym, and the teachers have nowhere to go for their breaks.”

There are 675 students from kindergarten to grade eight registered at the school, an increase of 51 from the previous year. In a statement to CityNews, the Board said the growth was ‘accurately projected’.

Portables were ordered back in January and were expected to be delivered last month, however, there was a manufacturer delay.

“Portables are used by school boards to manage enrolment pressures that are anticipated to decline over time as the neighbourhood stabilizes,” said Cory Wilkins, spokesperson for the Durham District School Board. “That’s what we’re doing at Fallingbrook PS right now. Fallingbrook PS is committed to providing the best possible learning experience for all students.”

Wilkins did not indicate to CityNews how long it would take for enrolment pressures to decline.

Three portables are set to arrive within the week and a fourth is expected to be delivered next month.

Some parents see the use of portable classrooms at the school as a temporary fix to a bigger problem.

“We can make adjustments to portables, but not when you start hearing that more and more portables are being added every year,” Thukral said. “I think it’s a band-aid, it doesn’t give you the long-term fix of what the school and the area need.”

Raj hopes officials come to the table to discuss the growth the area is experiencing.

Parents point to the increase of planned housing developments in the area that is contributing to a rapid population growth in Whitby.

“The number of houses that are being built in this area, they need to build a school,” May said. “They need to have this forward thinking and planning for the populations and the schools.”

The Ministry of Education said since 2018, the government has invested $164.4 million towards the creation of five new schools and additions to four existing schools, but ultimately the school boards are responsible for managing growth and enrollment expectations.

“School boards have a responsibility to ensure the best utilization of schools to accommodate the always changing number of students in the region,” said Grace Lee, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Education.