Towards an Equitable Child-Friendly City: A Case Study Evaluation of Child-Friendly Infrastructure in Toronto

The City of Toronto has recognized that designing spaces for children and youth results in a more inclusive and sustainable city for all users. This MRP seeks to understand whether childfriendly infrastructure has been equitably distributed across the City of Toronto, particularly in Neighbourhood Improvement Areas (NIAs) that have a high proportion of children. A City-wide analysis was conducted to understand which NIAs contain a high proportion of children. Based on this analysis, Thorncliffe Park and Mount Olive-Silverstone-Jamestown were selected for further case study analysis which included evaluating the network and quality of child-friendly infrastructure as well as identifying key opportunities and constraints. A discussion of recommendations has been presented which focus on improving placemaking and the quality of child-friendly infrastructure in underutilized public spaces, increasing children’s independent mobility, and prioritizing collaboration with children and their families to advance the childfriendliness of neighbourhoods.