Free to Play
Free to Play is an initiative that supports outdoor play for children across Canada through projects funded by local community foundations.
Free to Play is an initiative led by Community Foundations of Canada, seeded by the Waltons Trust with support from the Lawson Foundation and Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities that supports local leadership and creativity in making play accessible.
The goal is to resource organizations so they can create welcoming spaces where kids can be active, imaginative, and social, away from screens and in connection with each other and their communities. Funding decisions for Greater Saint John will be made by your local community foundation through a participatory grantmaking process.
Building Belonging Through Play
Outdoor play is declining across Canada, and kids, and communities, are feeling the impact. Only 39% of children meet daily physical activity guidelines (source), and only 15% of Canadian children aged 3 to 4 years meet screen time guidelines of less than one hour per day (source).
These trends are connected to rising anxiety, reduced resilience, and fewer opportunities for kids to build real-world skills.
Free to Play was created to support open-ended, adventurous play that helps kids thrive and communities come together. Because when kids are free to play, communities grow stronger too.
“When we invest in play, we build stronger children, healthier communities, and a deeper sense of belonging.” – Dr. Mariana Brussoni, Director, UBC Outside Play Lab
Objectives
Advance kids’ and community wellbeing
- Create inclusive spaces for outdoor play that support physical and mental health.
- Strengthen kids’ confidence, creativity, and resilience through unstructured play.
- Build a stronger sense of belonging for kids and families, particularly in underserved, rural, Indigenous, and racialized communities.
Encourage active play and reduce screen reliance
- Create more opportunities for kids to spend time outdoors in welcoming environments.
- Shift family and community habits toward more frequent, accessible outdoor play.
Demonstrate tangible impact on reducing barriers to play (cost, access, equipment, cultural connection).
Demonstrate sustainability and community ownership
- Strengthen the capacity of local organizations and leaders to carry this work forward.
- Embed principles of equity, inclusion, and “Nothing About Us Without Us” in delivery.
What is unstructured play?
Unstructured play (also called free play) is a form of play that is child-led, freely chosen, and intrinsically motivated. It is not organized by adults nor governed by a fixed structure or outcome. In Outdoor Play Canada's terms, unstructured play is where children follow their own instincts, ideas, and interests,, in their own way, for their own reasons.
Unstructured play often happens outdoors, but can take place in many environments where children have space, materials and freedom. By ensuring that children have time, space and permission to engage in unstructured play, we tap into their creativity, capacity for risk taking, independence, and deeper connection to their surroundings.
Free Play Resources to dive into:
- Outside Play Toolkit
- Canadian Paediatric Society
- Launch of the 2025 Position Statement on Active Outdoor Play! & Whiteboard Video
- Risk Benefit Assessment Toolkit
- Seven Cs design guidelines
- Trevor Noah What Now Podcast – The Anxious Generation
- Outdoor Play Canada Position Statement
- The importance of risky play for childhood development
- Play in the park: research participants wanted for intergenerational day of play in Halifax
- Outside Play Infographics
Our Participatory Approach to Granting:
Free to Play is being delivered in selected communities across Canada to ensure deep local impact, with the long-term goal of scaling in future phases.
The Greater Saint John Community Foundation will adopt a participatory approach to allocating the Free to Play funds in our region. This process will convene 6–8 organizations in March and April 2026 for three interactive sessions. During these sessions, participants will learn about the concept of free play, explore potential initiatives—both new and existing—and collaboratively allocate the available funding using a consensus-based framework.
At least $195,000 will be available for allocation by the Spring 2026 cohort
Organizations interested in joining are invited to submit a Letter of Interest (LOI) outlining their experience with free play, ideas for new initiatives in the region, and willingness to participate in the cohort.
ELIGIBILITY
Interested in joining the participatory cohort? Contact Harry@sjfoundation.ca for more information.
View Application to Participate in cohort
Learn more at this Outdoor Play 101 Webinar – December 10, 2:30pmNT/2:00pmAT. Click here to register.
