United Way adds school supports for students on Vancouver Island

United Way BC is bringing an out-of-school program to new communities on Vancouver Island to help address food insecurity and a lack of after-school support.

The non-profit’s School’s Out program for kids ages six to 12 is expanding to remote communities in Bamfield and Kyuquot, where staff say child poverty rates reach nearly 25 per cent and 20 per cent, respectively. It’s also expanding into Nanaimo.

“With Nanaimo, we’ve been hearing from kids and families that the out-of-school time space has been so inaccessible, so unaffordable,” says United Way BC strategic initiatives manager Trisha Dulku.

“Given the challenges that came through with COVID, affordability gaps and now what’s happening with the tariffs, where families are at risk of losing their jobs, the food insecurity and scarcity that a lot of kids and families are dealing with means that there need to be more accessible programs like the United Way BC School’s Out so that we can make sure kids are happy and growing and healthy.”

Dulku says families in each of the communities have shown their need for the program – which provides access to adult role models and mentors after school, nutritious snacks and enrichment activities that build literacy, numeracy and social skill development.

“One of the greatest joys I’ve had seeing these programs in action is seeing the confidence that kids gain,” she says. “This is a time when kids are learning exactly who they are and who they can be.”

The four sites in Nanaimo include partnerships with Vancouver Island University, School District 68 and the City of Nanaimo’s Parks, Recreation and Culture Department.

People can support the program at uwbc.ca/kids.