St. Charles Garnier Catholic School first opened in 1973 as a collection of portables where farm fields used to be. The school building was completed for the opening of the 1975-1976 school year. Approximately 440 students are enrolled in our school.
The school is located in Toronto's Jane/Finch community, a busy multicultural community with a richly diverse immigration population in the north-west portion of the city. The neighbourhood is heavily congested, framed by two main thorough fares and in close proximity to Highway 400. Few parks are situated in the neighbourhood and, as a result, few play areas for children. Two shopping malls cater to the neighbourhood and serve as recreational centers for children.
The school has no playground and virtually no play structures for children (just four basketball hoops). Establishing a playground, along with other play structures, would definitely meet a school and community need as the playground would also be used by members of the community. Many of our students live in apartment buildings in close proximity to the school, and it would therefore be easy for them to use the playground during non-school hours, especially on weekends.
