Corner Brook student, parents say school's lack of accessibility keeping others from enrolling

Parents and students of École C.C. Loughlin Elementary School in Corner Brook are voicing their concerns over accessibility issues they say their school is facing, and that it's keeping students with mobility challenges from enrolling.

Alice Brazil, a Grade 6 student, has tried to navigate the school's numerous hallways and stairs on crutches after fracturing his ankle at soccer practice. Stairs are the only way to access the school from its main entrance, and the building doesn't have accessibility ramps or an elevator.

"It's all stairs," Alice told CBC News this week.

"I can't go to the gym, library or the lower floor. I either stay in my classroom, or I have to go to another classroom. [It feels] really annoying, while other people, like my classmates, are having fun, I have to do work."

Brazil's mother, Shanda Slipp, said the old building has been expanded over the years, and that presents challenges in school layouts for any student.

The school has long hallways that twist and turn with narrow stairwells. Some students have to use multiple sets of stairs when travelling between classrooms, and Brazil has to enter the school through a back door because there are fewer stairs to navigate.

"The school is not accessible at all, you know, for someone with ability challenges," Slipp said.

"Accessibility is a right. It's a human right. It's not a luxury. It's not OK just to say, 'this is the way it is and we have an old building.'"

CBC News asked the Department of Education and NLSchools for interviews. Both declined.

École C.C. Loughlin Elementary is the only school in Corner Brook that offers French immersion. The next closest school to offer the program is an hour away in Stephenville.

Slipp told CBC News she has heard stories of students with mobility challenges being told to seek French immersion elsewhere.

"Kids with accessibility challenges just can not attend C.C. Loughlin," she said. "A child in a wheelchair could not participate in early French immersion in Corner Brook, which is, really, just not OK."

Kevin Mitchell, the school council's chair and vice-president of the Corner Brook chapter of Canadian Parents for French, said accessibility is a barrier for enrolment at the school.

Minutes before meeting CBC News for an interview, Mitchell said he met with a family who were questioning whether or not to enrol, given accessibility concerns.

"They ultimately decided to go ahead and enrol, which is great … but absolutely families are aware that it is not an accessible school," he said. "I hear families, at least weekly, come up to me and say we need a new school."

At minimum, Mitchell said, upgrades are needed.

Slipp says a new school would benefit future generations.

"I'm sure retrofits are expensive. This building probably just needs to be replaced, as I'm sure many others do. But these kids deserve better," she said.

In an emailed statement to CBC News, Department of Education and Early Childhood Development spokesperson Lynn Robinson said aging buildings undergo constant upgrades to meet the needs of a school's population. 

"In instances where it is not feasible to make the school fully accessible, government officials work with the school administration and student's family to determine what accommodations can be made to support the student's participation at school. For example, undertaking minor renovations to enhance accessibility, re-configuration of classroom and program areas on an accessible level of the school, or providing opportunity, where possible, for the student to attend a neighbouring school system that is amenable to all their accessibility needs," the statement said.

If a child has accessibility needs, the statement said, parents or guardians should consult with school administration.

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