Ontario Expanding School in Guelph
Province supports new student spaces
GUELPH — The Ontario government is investing $5.3 million in the Upper Grand District School Board for an expansion at Rickson Ridge Public School, helping working families in Guelph. This investment, announced by Mike Harris, MPP for Kitchener—Conestoga, will support the creation of 138 student spaces as part of the government’s commitment to building state-of-the-art learning spaces for Ontario students.
“Communities across Ontario are growing and we are working diligently to provide families and children with education options close to home, work and services,” said Mike Harris, Member of Provincial Parliament for Kitchener-Conestoga. “The addition of 138 new student spaces at Rickson Ridge Public School is great news for the community and educators in Guelph, and I’m pleased to hear that our government is making the area a priority.”
This project is part of a $1.3 billion investment to support new school construction and expansions to existing schools, including child care spaces, announced by Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education, as part of the Capital Priorities Program.
The overall investment, which is the highest ever made in a single year, supports 60 school‑related projects – 39 new school builds and 21 expansions to existing schools – including child care spaces for 27 projects. This funding will add more than 27,000 new student spaces and more than 1,700 licensed child care spaces at schools across Ontario.
“This $1.3 billion in funding represents the single largest investment in school building in Ontario history,” said Minister Lecce. “We are stepping up with a massive investment to build the homes, schools, and communities our province needs, and to ensure children have access to state-of-the-art, STEM focused schools close to home that gives them real life and job skills to succeed in the future.”
The new plan will provide school boards with more flexibility and support to get shovels in the ground quicker and have more options to use existing buildings in their communities. These changes are part of the government’s strategy to ensure that the public education system focuses on what matters most: teaching important life-long skills such as reading, writing and math; improving accountability and transparency for parents and families; and maximizing capital assets.
“Our government is investing in new schools and improved infrastructure across the province to support the needs of Ontario’s students, families, and growing communities.” said Kinga Surma, Minister of Infrastructure. “These investments are part of our historic $185 billion over the next ten years, to build and deliver the critical infrastructure Ontarians deserve today, and for future generations to come.”
The 2024 Budget: Building a Better Ontario continues to support the province’s work being delivered through Bill 98, the Better Schools and Students Outcomes Act, building schools faster and better employing taxpayer-funded assets.
“We are excited to see the expansion of Rickson Ridge Public School, with the support of the province, in a growing part of the city.” Ralf Mesenbrink, Chair of the UGDSB.
“This addition to the school will allow the school community to grow as we continue our focus on foundational educational and student achievement.” Peter Sovran, Director of Education, UGDSB.
Highlights of the project include:
Rickson Ridge Public School is located at 177 Rickson Ave in Guelph.
QUICK FACTS
- In December 2023, the Ministry of Education announced Ontario’s plan to help build schools faster through a transparent, accountable and more efficient process. In the recent Capital Priorities round, school boards were encouraged to standardize the design of new school construction, identify opportunities to work together on joint-use school projects, and bring forward shovel ready proposals.
- Since 2018, the Ontario government has invested more than $3.6 billion in capital construction projects in education, including 139 new schools, 109 additions and renovations to existing facilities, creating more than 98,000 student spaces and over 8,000 new licensed child care spaces.
- For the 2023-24 school year, the province is providing school boards with approximately $1.4 billion in funding to revitalize and renew aged building systems and components.
- The investment is part of Ontario’s commitment to provide about $16 billion to support new school construction, repair, and renewal over 10 years.
- The Better Schools and Student Outcomes Act, 2023 ensures the public education system focuses on what matters most: teaching important life‑long skills such as reading, writing and math; improving accountability and transparency for parents and families; maximizing capital assets of boards to support building modern schools faster and better utilizing current school capacity.
- In March 2022, Ontario secured a six-year, $13.2 billion agreement with the federal government that will lower fees for families to an average of $10 a day for children under the age of six. Ontario aims to reach that target by September 2025.