You are awesome

Thank you to everyone who answered this survey. We received a total of 84 responses and many of you wrote raw, open, and honest answers to our questions. We are deeply grateful to you for sharing your stories and heartfelt responses. We certainly learned a lot from your comments about what you do for recreation and leisure now, your hopes for future programming, and how we can make safe recreational spaces for all.

This post shares some brief highlights from what we heard in the survey and what we are doing as a result.

Unfortunately, we had only a few responses from children and youth, or their parents. As a result, we have only included responses from adults about their interests in this summary. We will look for more opportunities to hear from and about 2SLGBTQ+ children and youth in the future.

What we heard

Most of you (80%) said you are more likely to take part in recreation or fitness programs if they are specifically for 2SLGBTQ+ people or groups. You also told us there are many different types of recreation and fitness programs that you would like to attend. But the top five types of programs you said you would like to see are:

• Outdoor fitness
• Swimming
• Weightlifting
• Yoga
• Recreational Sports

We also heard that few (26%) feel comfortable going to your local community centre for fitness and recreation. You shared examples of barriers you have experienced – and made several suggestions for how we can make our programs and spaces more welcoming and inclusive for 2SLGBTQ+ people.

Here is an overview of the most common themes we heard for how we can improve:

Program delivery

• Offer recreation, fitness, and swimming programs created specifically for 2LGBTQ+ people for trans/nonbinary people in particular
• Offer free, low-cost, and sliding scale programs
• Offer programs at different times of day, different locations, and have a mix of registered and drop-in formats
• Have a gender-inclusive program registration process

Promotions

• Include images of 2SLGBTQ+ and BIPOC people in program advertisements
• Promote programs through 2SLGBTQ+ and BIPOC channels
• Have safe space statements on the website and on the registration page
• Have descriptions on the website of what to expect (from the facility, from the course)

Personnel

• Instructors and staff must be trained in creating 2SLGBTQ inclusive spaces, including:
  1. Using pronouns appropriately
  2. Intervening in negative behaviour towards 2SLGBTQ people
  3. Allowing participants to wear whatever clothing they prefer
  4. Being proactive to ensure the safety of 2SLGBTQ people
• Instructors must take a body positive and fat acceptance approach
• 2SLGBTQ+ employees should be hired for instructor and office staff positions

Physical space

• Post rainbow flags, pride symbols, and signage with safe space policies
• Offer programs in attractive, brightly lit, physically accessible spaces that offer a high degree of privacy
• Have gender neutral washrooms and changerooms available
• Have clearly established safe space policies for staff, visitors, and program attendees including:
  1. No tolerance for discriminatory behaviour
  2. Attendees may wear whatever clothing represents them to exercise or swim in
  3. Attendees may use whichever gendered washrooms or changerooms they prefer

What we are doing

In June 2022, we launched the BE U Swim aquatics program. BE U offers dedicated swim times for trans and non-binary individuals, as well as their friends, allies, and family members to use City pools in a safe, welcoming and inclusive environment. Learn more or register on ActiveNet

We also made space available for a new multi-sport drop-in for 2SLGBTQ+ adults (18+) at Stanley Park Community Centre. This group is free and open to all experience levels. It is offered by Spectrum and the Stanley Park Community Association. For more information, call the community centre at 519-741-2504

The Downtown Community Centre is offering an inclusive Downtown Tot Spot. This is a free drop-in program that is a safe and inclusive space for all different types of families including parents, caregivers and grandparents. Come spend time with your little one(s) to chat, play and listen to story time. This program takes place on Fridays at 9:30am starting September 23^rd, 2022. Please call the Downtown Community Centre for more information 519-741-2501.

We shared the general themes from the survey with Spectrum, our community partner on this initiative. They are now offering three free social and recreation programs: a yoga group, mindful movement program, and walking/hiking group. For more information contact Spectrum

Together with Spectrum, we have applied for an Innovation Initiative grant through Sport Canada. If we are successful, this grant would fund a new mentorship program to help local instructors deliver 2SLGBTQ-inclusive recreation, fitness programs and aquatics.

All City of Kitchener staff are encouraged to take an online 2SLGBTQ+ Allyship course, as well as other learning opportunities offered specifically for employees. Earlier this year, we shared the results of the survey and promoted this training course with community centre, aquatics, and recreation program staff.

Some of your recommendations will take longer to act on. The City of Kitchener’s Corporate Strategy on Equity and Anti-Racism is our approach to creating long-term change in our organization and it covers many of the issues you raised. It includes actions related to how we train staff, promote programs and services, recruit and hire new staff, and collect information from residents. Learn more

What’s next

We will keep using your comments to inform our programming, including your feedback on timing, location, and format (drop-in vs. registered). We will also keep exploring other opportunities to offer new programs that meet your needs and are inclusive to everyone.

We are acting on the other recommendations you had for our physical spaces, but again, some of these will take longer to carry out. We will keep working with community partners who are already successfully serving the 2SLGBTQS+ community and be guided by their best practices, experience, and advice.

If you have any follow up questions or comments about this survey, please contact Mary Dowhaniuk, Supervisor, Community Centres at 519-741-2200 x5071 or Mary.Dowhaniuk@kitchener.ca