Vote Vancouver on student support: counsellors, IEPs and liaison officers
Vote Vancouver would press the Province for more school counsellors and faster neurodivergence assessments, close the gap between IEPs and classroom help, and keep School Liaison Officers as a regular support who work out of uniform, alongside counsellors and youth workers.
EDUCATION · PAGES 26 TO 27
Student Mental Health, Neurodivergence and School Liaison Officers: what the Policy Priorities says
Vote Vancouver's education list opens with student mental health and neurodivergence. Neurodivergence means a brain that works in a different way from most, as with autism or ADHD. The party would push the Province for more school counsellors and for early childhood supports such as faster assessments. In class, the party wants to close the gap between individual education plans, or IEPs, which are the written plans for students with extra needs, and the help those students get. It names practical supports: coaching on organizing work, breaking assignments into smaller parts, help with sensory needs, flexible ways to show learning, and quiet places to write tests. It would also help parents apply for the Disability Tax Credit and related funding.
The second half of this page is about School Liaison Officers, or SLOs, police officers assigned to work with schools. Vote Vancouver would make them a regular support focused on early help and protecting young people from drugs and violence, while avoiding needless criminal charges. They would work out of uniform, be rebranded away from police, face regular independent reviews with a focus on fairness, and be paired with more counsellors, youth workers and restorative justice programs.
The Board of Education runs Vancouver public schools and decides which programs and staff work in them, so it can act on classroom supports and on the liaison program. The officers themselves are police, directed by the Vancouver Police Board, so changes to the liaison program also need the police to agree. The school funding formula is set by the Province, which is why the party describes counsellors and assessments as items it would advocate for.
7 COMMITMENTS
What the party says it would do
Provincial funding for counsellors and assessments
Vote Vancouver would advocate for better provincial funding for more school counsellors and early childhood supports, such as faster access to neurodivergence assessments.
- Who has the power
- Province The Province sets the school funding formula, so the board can only ask for more.
Closing the gap between IEPs and classroom support
The party would eliminate the gap between individual education plans (IEPs) and real classroom support for students with neurodiverse needs.
- Who has the power
- School Board The Board of Education decides how its staff and budget are used to support students in class.
Practical classroom supports
Vote Vancouver would put in place practical supports such as executive function coaching, chunking assignments, sensory regulation, flexible learning demonstrations and quiet testing environments.
- Who has the power
- School Board Classroom practice and support staff are managed by the school district.
Help with the Disability Tax Credit
The party would support parents in accessing the Disability Tax Credit (DTC) and related funding.
- Who has the power
- School Board Helping families with applications is work the school district can take on, while the tax credit itself is set by another government.
School Liaison Officers focused on early intervention
Vote Vancouver would establish School Liaison Officers (SLOs) as a regular support for students, focused on early intervention and youth protection from drugs, violence and similar harms, while avoiding unnecessary criminalization.
- Who has the power
- City, with others The Board of Education decides whether officers work in its schools, and the Vancouver Police Board directs the officers.
Liaison officers out of uniform, with independent reviews
SLOs would work out of uniform and be rebranded away from police, with regular independent equity-centred reviews.
- Who has the power
- City, with others These conditions would need agreement between the School Board and the police, who are directed by the Vancouver Police Board.
Counsellors and youth workers alongside liaison officers
The party would pair SLOs with expanded access to counsellors, youth workers and restorative justice programs.
- Who has the power
- School Board The board hires school counsellors and runs school programs, within the money the Province provides.
WHO WOULD HAVE TO ACT
Where the power sits for this chapter
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Questions about student mental health, neurodivergence and school liaison officers
What would Vote Vancouver do for neurodivergent students?
Vote Vancouver would push for faster neurodivergence assessments, close the gap between individual education plans and classroom help, and add supports such as executive function coaching, quiet testing spaces and flexible ways to show learning (Policy Priorities, page 26).
Does Vote Vancouver want police in Vancouver schools?
Vote Vancouver would establish School Liaison Officers as a regular support for students, focused on early intervention and youth protection. The officers would work out of uniform, be rebranded away from police and face regular independent equity-centred reviews (Policy Priorities, page 27).
What does Vote Vancouver say about school counsellors?
The party would advocate for better provincial funding for more school counsellors, and pair School Liaison Officers with more access to counsellors, youth workers and restorative justice programs (Policy Priorities, pages 26 to 27).
What is an IEP in Vote Vancouver's education plan?
An IEP is an individual education plan, the written plan for a student with extra needs. Vote Vancouver says it would close the gap between these plans and the real support students with neurodiverse needs get in class (Policy Priorities, page 26).
Would Vote Vancouver help parents with the Disability Tax Credit?
Yes. The party lists supporting parents in accessing the Disability Tax Credit and related funding among its student support commitments (Policy Priorities, page 26).
Can the Vancouver School Board bring back School Liaison Officers on its own?
The Board of Education decides which programs run in its schools, but the officers are police, directed by the Vancouver Police Board. Vote Vancouver's conditions, such as working out of uniform, would need both bodies to agree (Policy Priorities, page 27).
ON THE BALLOT
The Vote Vancouver candidates behind this
Sources
Every commitment on this page comes from the party's own material, marked SAYS SO ITSELF. It proves what the party says it would do. Who holds each power is our own addition, from the sources listed after it.
- Vote Vancouver Policy Priorities SAYS SO ITSELFVote Vancouver · pages 26 to 27 · checked