More than 30 per cent of B.C. kindergarten students don't have the skills they need when starting school – and many may never catch up, according to a provincial study released Tuesday.

The report, an annual inter-university project at the University of B.C. that compiled results from kindergarten teachers, found that 30.3 per cent of children were vulnerable, up from 28.5 per cent last year and 26 per cent in 2004.

The national average for the Early Development Index (EDI), where children arrived developmentally unprepared in terms of child development, is approximately 25 per cent.

While some districts reported rates of childhood vulnerability below 10 per cent, some soared well over 60, including South Fort George in downtown Prince George (62.8%) and Chilliwack North (61.8%).

The largest trends of increasing vulnerability occurred in Vancouver, the Comox Valley and Langley. The most positive trends occurred in Fort Nelson, West Vancouver and Revelstoke.

The highest rate in Metro Vancouver is in Strathcona, at 58.5 per cent. West and North Vancouver revealed the lowest vulnerability.

Dr. Clyde Hertzman, Director of UBC's Human Early Learning Partnership, told ctvbc.ca the level of inequality by neighbourhood is very large.

"Across the province, when you look by neighbourhood, about half of the variability in vulnerability is associated with the socio-economic status of the area, things like what the people make and the income of the families," he said.

Related: Geographic maps of vulnerability rates

But Hertzman said the kids who aren't prepared aren't necessarily from low-income families.

"The other half comes from level of services for children and the community support. These are things that aren't related to income like access to quality learning and care programs," he said.

"It doesn't have to be a rich place."

This assertion rings true in Rossland and Revelstoke, two rural communities who had the lowest vulnerability scores in the province with 0 and 15.5 per cent respectively.

"One of the things that seem to be true in those areas is strong community support for people in their early years. There are few challenges in terms of transiency and some of the problems we see in inner-city services," Hertzman said.

Rossland's success can be credited to good programs and services combined with parent enthusiasm, says Sonia Tavares, Coordinator of the Strong Start program at MacLean Elementary School.

"Parental involvement here is huge," she told ctvbc.ca.

"People want to prepare their children for school and are always looking for more outlets for them. If there is a program there they'll access it."

The survey is based on a questionnaire given to kindergarten teachers across the province that examines 104 benchmarks of their students. In addition to educational indicators, like understanding letters and holding a pen, social markers like clothing and whether children get along with their peers, are also evaluated.

Related: Benchmarks for ranking children's vulnerability

Two years ago, the B.C. provincial government set a target to reduce provincial child vulnerability rates to 15 per cent by 2015.

Hertzman said based on what he's seen in 10 years of research, there's little chance the target will be met.

"Over the last decade, we've seen some sustained improvements in some places, some sustained declines in some places but we've seen minimal net change," he said.

"The socio-economic position for families with young children hasn't gotten much better. That's an issue in B.C. and in the rest of Canada."

It is hoped the EDI data will help government and communities guide policies and programs to help vulnerable children.

More information

Survey criteria for teachers included not only markers of education, but also of lifestyle, emotional and social competence. See below for the entire list:

1. Physical health and well-being

  • fine and gross motor development
  • levels of energy
  • daily preparedness for school (tired, late, hungry)
  • washroom independence
  • established handedness

2. Social competence

  • co-operation and respect for others (children and adults)
  • ability to work within the school environment
  • socially appropriate behaviour during school activities
  • self-control, self-confidence

3. Emotional maturity

  • pro-social behaviour: helping, tolerance, empathy
  • aggressive behaviour
  • anxiety, hyperactivity, inattention, impulsiveness
  • informal, peer-to-peer interaction

4. Language and cognitive development

  • interest in books, reading, language-related activities (rhyming, group reading)
  • literacy: ability to recognize letters, read and write simple words
  • interest in simple math-related activities
  • numeracy: ability to recognize and compare numbers, count, sort, etc.

5. Communication skills and general knowledge

  • ability to clearly communicate one's own needs and understand others in English
  • clear articulation
  • active participation in storytelling (not necessarily with good grammar and syntax)
  • interest in and general knowledge about the world