Summer Camps and Playgrounds

• Dress campers according to weather.
• Campers must wear closed-toe shoes – no flip flops, crocs or sandals. Running shoes are recommended.
• For indoor camps, please send clean indoor shoes during inclement weather.
• Hat and sunscreen.
• Bug repellent is recommended for outdoor camps.
• Label all articles worn or brought to camp with your child’s name.
• Send camper in older ‘play’ clothing.

Each day your child will be required to bring a lunch, drink and two snacks. To avoid loss or confusion, place your child’s name on their lunch.

Please send your child with a refillable water bottle.

Due to severe allergies, all snacks and lunches must be nut-free.

Please do not send cell phones, toys, books, electronics, money, or sharp objects to camp. Personal items brought to camp should be limited. There will be no sharing of personal items between participants. You will be notified in writing if your child is requested to bring specific items to camp.

If your child is sick on a day of camp, please keep them home to avoid the spread of the illness.  Contact the Summer Camp Hotline at 365-282-6174 or email camps@ajax.ca and they will notify the Camp Supervisor of your child’s absence.

All staff have current Standard First Aid, CPR-C, HIGH FIVE® Principles of Healthy Child Development – a national certification, criminal record check, attend a comprehensive week-long, pre-summer training session and have received additional Health & Safety training.

Please bring your child to the designated drop off area at the start of each camp day to sign-in. Please ensure that when you or the authorized pick-up person returns to pick-up the child that the child is signed out directly with the Camp Supervisor.

A child who is 10 or older may leave the program by themselves, and at any time, if the parent/guardian has agreed to it on the registration form or with a signed note from the parent/guardian.

If your child is 9 or under, and going to the same home as an older sibling, they may walk home together. Otherwise, a caregiver 14 years or older must pick your child up.

The safety of the campers is our number one priority. It is imperative that the person registering the camper provides us with the names of all people permitted to pick up your child. Your child will not be released to anyone not on the list. There is no exception to this rule.

If a name needs to be added to the pick-up list please call the Summer Camp Hotline at 365-282-6174 or email camps@ajax.ca starting June 29, 2026.

Prior to June 29, 2026 please call 905-427-8811, 905-428-7711, or 905-427-2468.

For those camps listed for ages 4-7 years old, your child must be 4 years of age or older at the start of the camp week. There will be no age exceptions made for campers under the age of 4 years old.

For camps listed 5 years old and older, you may register your child if their age falls within the calendar year.

Please note: No age exceptions will be made for the following camps: Kindercamp, Mini Treasure Hunters, Saplings, Camp Taparac Jr., Dodgeball!, Sports Centre, Elevate GirlSport Camp, Sportball, Skateboard Camp, Camp Finale and Summer Camp Days. For these camps, campers must meet the minimum age requirements by the start of the camp week.

Please email camps@ajax.ca or call 365-282-5967 (Children’s Camps), 365-282-5973 (Youth Camps), or 365-282-6032 (Contracted Service Provider Camps) to discuss any age exception requests.

• Staff to Camper Ratio ranges between 1:10 and 1:12 (depending on age of campers).
• Groups are based on chronological age.
• Please notify us at the time of registration if you wish to have your child placed in a group with a sibling or friend. We will try our best to accommodate your request.

All camps operate on rainy days. If it is raining at the start of the camp day, Camp Mtigwaki, Saplings, Camp Taparac, Lake to Land, Mini Treasure Hunters, Summer Camp Days and Camp Finale may be relocated by bus to the Ajax Community Centre, Audley Recreation Centre or Village Arena. These camps will return by bus to their locations by 3:30pm to get ready for end of the day sign-out. All other camps will remain at their regularly assigned locations and will move indoors for programming. Should inclement weather occur during camp, adequate shelter will be provided to accommodate all campers. The Summer Camp Hotline will be updated to inform whether or not the above camps have been moved.

Outdoor camps operate under the following conditions when temperatures are under 40 degrees Celsius with humidex:

• Staff will take daily conditions into account and plan activities accordingly.
• Water breaks will be scheduled every 20 minutes.
• Sunscreen will be applied every 2 hours or after water play.

When temperatures exceed 40 degrees Celsius with humidex the following provisions will be made:

• All camp programs will run indoors at their scheduled locations.
• Outdoor play will be limited.

Camp Mtigwaki, Saplings, Camp Taparac, Lake to Land, Mini Treasure Hunters, Summer Camp Days and Camp Finale may be relocated by bus to the Ajax Community Centre, Audley Recreation Centre or Village Arena. These camps will return by bus to their locations by 3:30pm to get ready for end of the day sign-out. The Summer Camp Hotline will be updated to inform whether or not the above camps have been moved.

Some camps participate in recreational swimming at the Ajax Memorial Pool (unless stated otherwise) under the guidance of qualified lifeguards. Campers will be transported to the pool and back on our camp buses.  Camps do not swim on the first day of a camp week.  Swim information will be included in your child’s first day letter.

On the first visit to the pool, your child will be screened for swimming ability and visually identified (coloured bracelet) for supervision according to skill level. While in the water, campers will also be supervised by camp staff. All campers are expected to change into proper swimming attire. All participants are encouraged to swim during swim times. Those not swimming will participate in supervised land activities.

• All campers 6 years old and younger must wear a lifejacket and remain in the shallow end, regardless of swim ability. This is to meet the Town’s Admission Standards. They will swim with a camp counsellor in the water.
• Campers 7 years of age and older can take the swim test, with parent/guardian consent, in order to swim in the deep end of the pool.
• Campers aged 7-9 who do not pass/take the swim test will swim with a staff member in the shallow end of the pool. Campers 10 years of age and older who do not pass/take the swim test will swim in the shallow end of the pool.

We provide emergency transportation to the hospital, if required. A staff member stays with your child until parents/guardians arrive. Your child will never be left alone. Parents/emergency contacts are notified as soon as possible.

The photography policy allows you to take photographs of your own family only. If you wish to take a photo of the counsellor or any other camper, you must obtain permission from the counsellor and the parents/guardians of the other camper before taking any photos. In order to respect the privacy of all participants, any photos or videos taken are for personal use only. Please do not post photos to public social media websites (e.g. YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, etc).

The following procedures must be followed when sending medication and/or puffer(s) to camp:

• You must read, sign and fill out the medication consent form (form can be requested at the front desk of any community centre or will be made available by camp staff)
• Send the medication to camp in the original prescribed container
• Only send the correct dosage for the day
• Any medication should be given directly to the camp supervisor to hold or be stored
• Puffer(s) will stay on the camper at all times

The following procedures must be followed when sending a child with an Epipen to camp:

• You must read, sign and fill out the allergy alert poster and Epipen consent form (forms can be requested at the front desk of any community centre or will be made available by camp staff).
• You must send two Epipens to camp – one stays on the camper at all times, the other is secured in the camp office and will be returned at the end of the session.
• If a camper forgets their Epipen and there is not a second Epipen stored in the camp office, the camper will be removed from the camp and a parent/guardian will be contacted to bring an Epipen or pick their child up.