Day camps looking for monitors and fast!

Many children across Quebec may never get a place in summer day camp because of the glaring lack of monitors.

• Read also: It’s chaos in day camp registrations: here’s why

“There is a limit of places offered to families currently, because of the shortage of manpower”, underlines Éric Beauchemin, director general of the Association of the camps of Quebec.

“I have a dozen children who are still waiting to find out if they will have a place in day camp or not. It will depend on whether I have one more monitor,” laments Marcel Alwan, of the Lapinou Lapina day camp in Montreal.

A widespread problem across the province, while the available places could be even more numerous if the staff allowed it. This is the case of the Marist camp, in Rawdon, which is full for several weeks during the summer. Especially for groups of young people aged 5 to 8 years.

Camp Portneuf, located near Quebec, is 93% full for the summer season. Recruitment of staff, both to take care of the children and for housekeeping and the cafeteria, continues to be in full swing.

“This year, we have waiting lists of around 6 people per age group for certain weeks. That’s a lot”, comments the owner of the camp which welcomes children from 3 to 14 years old.

To attract staff, Olivier Lauzon tries to stand out from the competition by offering accommodation and food to his staff on site.

CESAM, a day camp offered to young people from Rosemont, Île des Soeurs, Longueuil and Laval, is also having difficulty hiring qualified personnel. The last three years have been among the most “problematic” for the hiring of instructors and companions.

“We are still short of instructors and instructors, we have been recruiting since February”, launches Alain Lépine, project director of Camp CESAM which is in its 17^e year.

• Listen to the interview with Éric Beauchemin, General Manager of the Association des camps du Québec on QUB radio:

Technical issues

Lucie Tremblay, a resident of Bromont, was unable to obtain the day camp places she wanted for her boys. She finds herself on a waiting list like many parents, due to technical problems with her city’s online booking platform.

“I think it’s really deplorable to only use digital. Not all parents are comfortable with technology, ”laments the one who will have to call on the services of the neighboring town.

Fortunately for his two 8-year-old daughters, Xavier McGuire, who also lives in Estrie, was able to circumvent the computer problem of his municipality’s day camp. However, he denounces the stressful situation experienced by many parents.

“From the start I had technical problems and I’m used to working with computers,” laments the 38-year-old project manager.

Combined with the lack of places, many parents were caught off guard by the situation.

“We know that there are labor problems, but there are solutions that exist”, in particular by offering better working conditions and more competitive wages, he concludes.

Camps looking for volunteers

A record number of companions are needed to allow children with special needs to participate in day camps.

“There are families where one of the two parents has to go on unemployment because there are not qualified personnel to take care of their children at the day camp”, deplores Danny Lauzière, director of the Association of Parents of Disabled Children of Drummondville.

A situation that seems to have worsened in recent years, due to a lack of qualified guides.

“I’ve been getting calls from parents since February, because they’re nervous. They want their children to be able to enjoy their summer,” he adds.

The newspaper contacted some thirty day camps across Quebec. The issue of accessibility for children with special needs is felt everywhere and the lack of volunteer parents is glaring.

“We are especially short of attendants at the moment, for us it is unimaginable to refuse children with special needs for this reason”, launches Olivier Lauzon, from Camp Portneuf.

The owner of the establishment is exploring all possible avenues to allow children waiting to obtain a place. In particular by calling on experienced former employees and even specialized education technicians to lend a hand.

“There are levels of needs that must be met, sometimes children simply cannot go to the toilet without help,” says Alphonse Esteve, president of CESAM.

So sometimes, members of a child’s family accompany him to the day camp to allow him to participate.

“We must redouble our efforts to find guides, there are children [qui ont besoin d’assistance] for whom the place at the camp is not guaranteed,” notes Jolaine Beausoleil, coordinator of Bon-Pasteur recreation in Laval.