As many of you are aware, in late February, our district typically holds an in-person community forum and invites PAC representatives to attend sessions to learn more about our budget and other key priorities. In the interest of health and safety, we have once again moved our 2022 budget consultations online. All of the presentations have been pre-recorded so they can be viewed safely at home from this web page. As with previous years, there is also an online survey to gather priorities and feedback from parents, students, staff and the larger community.

This year’s agenda includes:

• Introduction (Surrey Board of Education)
• Budget 2022 (presenter: Simon Ayres, Assistant Secretary Treasurer)
• Capital projects (presenter Dave Riley, Director Capital Project Office)

Consultations

As mentioned above, Surrey Schools is inviting all staff, students, parents and members of the Surrey, White Rock and Barnston Island communities to learn about and provide input on the 2022-23 district budget. Participants can share their feedback via an online survey, or reach out to us through email (consultations@surreyschools.ca), traditional mail or your local Parent Advisory Council representative. The survey will run until end of day, March 4, 2022.

It is important to remember that while the majority of the district’s budget is pre-allocated to operating and capital costs (i.e. school construction, additions, seismic upgrades, teachers, educational assistants, programs/services and supplies), there is some room to address priorities identified by the community. This can include anything from funding scholarships, to classroom enhancement funds to new programs and social initiatives.