Senior recreation programs 2023-24

I've been working on updating Senior Toronto listings to include the latest offerings. When it comes to the listings from Toronto Parks and Recreation, this is harder than it used to be. Fall programs used to be announced in early August, but now they don't show up until nearly the end of the month, leaving us with little time to make decisions before registration day. And they no longer produce a Fun Guide in print or PDF. The Fun Guide was a clear, easy-to-use document that laid out all the programs for each organization. Now you have to search online. It's up to you to discover where to look. Registered programs and drop-in programs are listed separately, with very different interfaces. The drop-in programs were especially slow to update this year, with new information appearing in dribs and drabs over several weeks. There is no longer a separate heading for Older Adult programs; you have to sift through all the programs to find any with the subheading "older adult". So finding senior programs is harder than ever, and many seniors have expressed frustration trying to hunt them down.

What you do find is pretty disappointing. Many of the Centres that routinely run senior programs have cut back on their offerings, especially arts, dance, games and walking programs. I was pleased to find eight Centres offering senior programs for the first time or bringing them back after a hiatus. But there were also ten Centres that offered senior programs last year -- and some for many years before that --but are not offering any now.

I don't know how Toronto Parks and Recreation Community Centres decide which programs to offer. But I can't imagine that their senior programs aren't needed. After being stuck at home through four years of the pandemic, most seniors are eager to get back to being active and engaged and involved with other people. If you can't find programs that interest you through Toronto Parks and Recreation, remember that there are other organizations that also provide senior programming: community centres not run by Parks and Recreation, community health centres, neighbourhood centres and senior centres. In addition to fitness and recreation, many of these organizations also offer a variety of support services. They're all listed here on Senior Toronto.