Sport for Life has created a resource book for clubs and provinces and national sport bodies to support new comers to Canada. Below is a summary of the New-to-Canada Long-Term Development in Sport and Physical Activity Pathway (NLTD, Sport for Life, 2025)

Purpose & Scope

• NLTD is a framework/resource designed to support people who are new to Canada (newcomers, immigrants, refugees) in their journey into sport and physical activity.

• The guide is meant for two key partner groups:

  1. Organizations that support newcomers as they arrive and settle (e.g. settlement agencies, immigrant support groups).

  2. Sport and physical activity organizations that want to be inclusive and adapt their programs to better welcome newcomers.

• Overall goals:

  • Enable new-to-Canada participants to flourish through participation in sport and physical activity.

  • Promote personal development, health, wellbeing, community connections, and social inclusion.

Key Components of the Framework

While the full details are in the document, some of the main features are:

• Pathway approach: It lays out stages and supports across those stages, similar in concept to Long-Term Development (LTD) models.  The idea is to map what supports are needed from newcomer arrival, settling, initial participation, through to sustained engagement.

• Inclusive design: Focus on removing barriers for newcomers — cultural, linguistic, financial, logistical, social — so that participation is meaningful and sustainable.

• Collaboration among partners: Encourages coordination between settlement services / newcomer-focused agencies and sport/physical activity providers.

• Outcome alignment: NLTD is designed to align with broader immigration, public health, and sport/physical activity outcomes — i.e. not only sport participation, but also settlement, health, social cohesion.

Intended Impacts & Benefits

• For newcomers:

  • Better access and pathways into sport, recreation, physical activity.

  • Increased opportunities for social connection, wellness, sense of belonging.

  • Possibility to develop skills, find enjoyment, perhaps compete, depending on interest.

• For organizations & communities:

  • Clear guidance on how to adapt programs to newcomer needs.

  • More inclusive sport/PA sectors.

  • Communities that are more socially cohesive.

• For society at large:

  • Health and wellbeing gains.

  • Stronger integration of newcomers.

  • More equitable access to sport and physical activity.