Municipal Guide to Promising and Best Practices for Disability Inclusion in Recreation and Physical Activity
Introduction
People with disabilities have significantly fewer opportunities than other Canadians to enjoy the benefits of active recreation opportunities due to physical, social, and psychological barriers. Since municipal governments have a mandate to provide physical activity and recreation to all residents including those with a disability, this project aims to increase opportunities and access at the municipal level.
Project Goal
The purpose of this guide will be to provide how-to practices for staff to implement disability inclusion in municipal recreation departments. The guide is targeted to staff who work in the capacity of directors of recreation and/or leisure services, as well as program directors, coordinators, and managers. In addition, persons with disabilities, program delivery staff, municipal decision makers, support networks for persons experiencing disability such as caregivers, family and friends, as well as community organizations and other knowledge users, will be encouraged to use this resource to guide their own initiatives and advocacy efforts.
Project Partners
ALACD is collaborating with the Federal/Provincial/Territorial Government Physical Activity and Recreation Committee (PARC), Queen’s University School of Kinesiology and Health Studies, Canadian Parks and Recreation Association (CPRA) and P/T affiliates, and Canadian Disability Participation Project (CDPP).
Project to Date
The first version of the municipal guide was developed in 2024 by collecting evidence through a rapid scan of existing resources, focus groups, and rapid scoping reviews. Eight themes of promising and best practices emerged as key focus areas, including: accessibility in the built environment, inclusive programming, and inclusive workplace culture and management, communication, staff training and education, partnerships with knowledge users, evaluation and feedback, and financial support and budgeting. A consensus panel was also formed that included persons with disabilities, caregivers, municipal staff, researchers and community representatives, who reviewed the evidence and provided input on the first three areas of practice: accessibility in the built environment, inclusive programming, and inclusive workplace culture and management.
Future of the Project
The evidence process explained above will be replicated in 2025 to expand the areas of practice of the guide. ALACD views this initiative as its flagship program and is currently developing a five-year communications and community engagement strategy for which funding is being sought to support its implementation. We aim to launch the guide in the fall of 2025. For questions, contact our project manager, Taryn Barry, at taryn.barry@ala.ca.