How do I know if my child requires support? 

Your child may need to attend camp with support if they:

• Receive one-to-one support at school, such as help from an Educational Assistant
• Have a physical, visual, hearing, development or intellectual disability
• Have attention or behaviour challenges
• Need support to participate safely in a group setting
• Need extra support at home for personal care, such as eating or using the bathroom

Questions to ask to determine if your child is program ready (with support): 

• Can my child follow directions and instructions from a staff person/adult/caregiver (e.g. able to move from the program room to outside with limited prompting)?
• Is my chiId comfortable and able to interact in a group environment? 
• Is my child able to follow the Participant Code of Conduct? 
• Is my child able to interact and participate in the program in a way that is safe for themselves and others (e.g. Staying within the program room)?
• Is my child able to participate in the activities?
  • Participation in programs is based on the participant’s individual needs; however, it is asked that participants demonstrate the ability to participate in as many of the program’s activities as possible

Levels of support PSP may be able to provide:

• 1:1 support. Your child will have a dedicated Inclusion Support Facilitator with them full time, whenever they are in camp programming.
• Shared group support. Your child will be supported throughout the day/week by an Inclusion Support Facilitator who is assigned to multiple children.
• Occasional support. Your child will receive additional support by either an Inclusion Support Facilitator OR additional camp staff, only as a response to your child having difficulty in camp. This support will depend on staff availability and the severity of challenges your child is facing.
• External Support Person. If your child has complex needs that PSP cannot support, families are welcome to bring their own external support persons to camp. Please contact us for the full policy and procedure. 

The level of support each child needs is determined by their completed Inclusion Support Request, as well as previous camp experiences. If your child has a designation or requires additional support in school or structured activities, the first step is to register your child in our Inclusion Support Request program.

This must be done prior to registering in the camp programs. A limited number of spaces are held in all camps for children requiring inclusion support. As part of this registration, you will indicate which camp programs you ideally require. PSP staff will review requests and then offer camp spaces, at which point the full registration and payment will be completed. Additional Inclusion Support paperwork will be required. If your child requires 1:1 or 2:1 support, there will be a limit on how many weeks of camp will be available.

PSP Camp Inclusion Support Request registration
(search for Inclusion under the Camps tab) 

Thank You!

We are grateful to the Island Health Supported Child Development Program for providing grant funding for Spring and Summer Camp Inclusion Support.