Helping a child participate in sports, recreation and activities.
Activities can give children friendships, routine and confidence. Financial help may keep a child connected when household circumstances suddenly change.
Part of our Community & Respite resource series. See the main Community & Respite guide for the wider topic and related resources. Following a guided route? Return to the Money & practical-needs route.
Information reviewed September 2026. Program rules, benefits and services can change, so use the linked official source for current requirements.
Recreation is not an extra for children who have already lost stability.
Sport, swimming, music, camps, clubs and other activities can give a child friendships, routine, confidence and an identity that is not centred on family crisis. The cost can be difficult when a child has suddenly joined a household.
KidSport PEI
KidSport Prince Edward Island currently provides grants of up to $600 per eligible child age 18 or younger, per calendar year, toward sport registration fees. The provincial program says equipment needs may be referred to a partner agency, while travel and competition costs are not eligible. Financial eligibility applies, so check the current PEI application before relying on the grant.
The current 211 listing says children must be 18 or younger and the sport must be affiliated with a member sport organization of Sport PEI. Income eligibility applies, so check the current application before assuming eligibility.
KidSport Prince Edward Island Provincial Fund
Canadian Tire Jumpstart
Jumpstart's Individual Child Grant program currently provides eligible low-income families with help for sport-focused activities. In 2026, the national program lists up to $300 per child per year, subject to local chapter availability and eligibility.
Jumpstart Individual Child Grants
Municipal and community subsidies
Some PEI municipalities offer their own child recreation or arts subsidies. These programs are local, can be small, and change over time. 211 PEI maintains a recreation financial-assistance category that is useful for finding current programs by community.
211 PEI: Recreation Financial Assistance
Ask the activity provider too.
Many leagues, camps, dance schools, community centres and clubs have fee waivers, payment plans, used-equipment programs or quiet assistance that may not be heavily advertised. Asking privately can sometimes solve the problem faster than finding a formal grant.
Think beyond organized sport.
Movement
Swimming, skating, sport, recreation programs, hiking, cycling and community fitness.
Creativity
Music, art, theatre, crafts, photography and community cultural programs.
Belonging
4-H, youth groups, libraries, camps, clubs, volunteering and community organizations.
Keep the child's existing activities where possible.
If the child was already attached to a team, coach, dance class or club before moving into kinship care, maintaining that activity can preserve an important piece of continuity. Before cancelling because of cost or transportation, ask whether the program, GACP, KidSport, Jumpstart, a municipality or another community resource can help.
GACP may be worth asking about.
GACP monthly support is intended to help with the ordinary costs of raising the child. Extra support is subject to program rules and approval. If an activity is important to a child's wellbeing or special needs, ask the worker what is and is not eligible rather than assuming.
Transportation can be part of the barrier.
Registration assistance does not help if a caregiver cannot get the child to practices or programs. Look at family, team carpooling, regional transit, mileage supports where applicable and whether a closer activity could provide the same benefit.
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