Parents and families seeking affordable options for summer childcare will have some added support through a free, city-funded recreation program. Damon Johnston, manager of recreation services with the City of Nanaimo, oversees the Roving Playground Program as part of his portfolio.

“I think primarily what we really want to achieve with this program is to provide an accessible, welcoming, free program that gives families and children an opportunity to participate in summer activities. … Another goal is to really take this program and offer it in the neighbourhoods throughout the community,” said Johnston at his office in the Beban Social Centre. “And I think the other primary thing is to create a program that is barrier-free.”

Running weekdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. between July 6th and September 4th, the program gives children ages 5 to 12 a chance to make friends and participate in organized games alongside trained recreation leaders. Johnston also shares what kinds of activities children can expect throughout the summer.

“We've got arts and crafts. Like I said, we've got water activities, all kinds of sports, camp games, group activities, and things like that. So we really try to make it fun and … really attract kids into the program, with fun and exciting activities,” said Johnston.

Maffeo Sutton Park is one of the locations for the Roving Playground Program from the City of Nanaimo (Liam Prendergast / CHLY 101.7FM)

Leandra Yellowlees, a parent of two from Vancouver Island who frequents playgrounds, spoke with CHLY at Maffeo Sutton Playground in downtown Nanaimo about her perspectives on the program.

“I feel great about it. I think they're super necessary and definitely beneficial. Being able to drop your kids off somewhere and have a couple of hours to do things on your own, I think any parent would agree that is incredibly valuable,” said Yellowlees.

Arlene Sevenhuysen was also at the Maffeo Sutton Playground with her grandchildren and shared her thoughts on the program. She said she had not participated in previous years because her grandchildren usually played together at home, and discussed possible concerns about the program.

“Well, I would trust that the playground would be cleaned up, and if there was anything that could harm the children, that would be looked after before the kids got there. Concerns? I don't think so, as long as the kids are well supervised,” said Sevenhuysen.

Yellowlees also spoke about potential concerns and emphasizes the importance of having experienced leaders running the program.

“I mean, obviously I wanna make sure that the people that are running the program are qualified to look after kids. They've got their CPR and first aid and all of that.”

Johnston explained the training recreation leaders receive, along with the qualifications applicants mostly possess when hired for these positions.

“They will have worked in daycare settings. They might be working within the school district and other community organizations that provide services to children and families. They might be, of course, day camp leaders, and so the type of training that we provide is everything from, supporting children in managing behaviors, conflict resolution, program design, developing camp calendars, first aid, of course, is important training. They do some public safety education and training through our community safety program, and that's really, I think the bulk of the training that they would receive prior to starting,” said Johnston.

Sevenhuysen said she believes a program like this can be especially beneficial for families across Nanaimo.

“That would be good for low-income families for sure. I think that's a great way to get kids out of the house for a mom or a dad who's struggling a bit. So more of that would be great.”

Johnston also explained how families can take part in the program, including what parents should prepare their children for and who to look for when arriving at the playground.

“So with any City of Nanaimo program, including our summer day camps, we have a sign-in procedure and a sign-out procedure. And so a child can come to the program and connect with our leaders. They're in bright orange T-shirts, well labeled Summer Leader, City of Nanaimo on it. And what we would ask them is their name, and an emergency contact phone number, and that's all. So really from a registration process, it is quite simple. Parents can stay and they can be on site, or they don't have to be. A child can attend the program and be safely supervised by our City of Nanaimo summer camp playground leaders.”

The Roving Playground Program begins July 6th at Mansfield Park and moves to a new location every few weeks throughout the summer. Other stops include Harewood Centennial Park, Deverill Square Park, Maffeo Sutton Park, and Westwood Lake Park, where the program concludes on September 4th. For a full schedule and more information, visit the Parks, Recreation and Culture page of the City of Nanaimo’s website at nanaimo.ca.

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