Parents and union representatives say the new staffing does not make up for the previous losses while needs rise.
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The Surrey school district plans to hire 40 education assistants, partly reversing staffing reductions from last year when it faced a budget deficit.
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The increase of 40 full-time education assistants — or inclusive education support workers, as Surrey Schools calls them — is needed to meet growing demand, said trustee Terry Allen, chair of the district’s finance committee.
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“As much as enrolment has gone down by 900 students, special needs students… have gone up by 300,” he said. “There’s a greater need.”
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The planned increase comes a year after Surrey Schools, facing a $16-million shortfall, cut programs, including a Grade 7 band program and the White Rock Learning Centre, while also losing 50 EAs through attrition.
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On Wednesday, the school district approved its 2026-27 budget, which has a $3.8 million shortfall, driven primarily by declining enrolment. Allen said the shortfall will be covered using surplus funds from this year’s budget.
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Some parents and the union representing education assistants say the additional hiring does not go far enough.
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Tammy Murphy, president of CUPE 728, which represents support staff including education assistants, said the number of students with diverse needs increased by 375 last year while staffing levels dropped.
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“We went up 375 students and went down 50 EAs,” she said. Even with the increase of 40, the district is still down 10 and that doesn’t factor in any increase in need next school year. “We’re still behind the ball. I don’t even see how they can catch up.”
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On average, one education assistant may support three to five students, Murphy said, when ideal staffing would be closer to one-to-one or one-to-two ratios.
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The staffing shortage means students suffer, while the education assistants who remain are overworked and increasingly absent due to injury and burnout.
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“It’s at the point now that we refer to ourselves as school triage,” Murphy said, pointing out that the district’s superintendent Mark Pearmain got a 26 per cent pay hike last year, bumping up his annual remuneration to just above $447,000.
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Surrey District Parent Advisory Council president Anne Whitmore said the additional positions are welcome but insufficient.
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“It’s great they’re eyeing that number, but it still leaves us with a net deficit of EAs in our district,” she said. “Even before the 50 EA cuts, we were already under-resourced.”
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Whitmore said the district has prioritized students with more visible needs — such as those who are physically dependent or require behavioural support — while students with inclusive education designations or diagnosed disabilities who need academic support are increasingly being overlooked.
