Social Planning Report: The Face of Guelph and Wellington is Changing

The population of Guelph and Wellington County grew by about 7% from 2001 to 2006. As our community grows, so does the number of New Canadians who live here. The foreign-born population in the City of Guelph makes up 20% of the total population, which slightly higher than the national average, but lower than the provincial average¹; in contrast, 11% of the county population was born outside of Canada, which is lower than both the national and provincial averages.²

Across the country, recent immigrants are most likely to have come from Asia and the Middle East and “Chinese languages” is the third most common mother tongue after English and French.³

If our population is becoming more diverse, then the strengths and needs of our community will also change.

Learning to navigate a new city and take steps to comfortably settle is a challenge for anyone who moves to a new place. Many new Canadians will face the same challenges along with others expressly related to their immigration experience. Language barriers and cultural differences can make it difficult for newcomers to easily learn about and access the services they need. A national longitudinal study of immigrants who arrived in Canada in 2001 found that some of the challenges they faced included: finding suitable employment, language barriers, weather, lack support from home and lack of a Canadian social network.⁴

Knowing the population is becoming more diverse is important for community service providers as they think about the services they currently offer and plans for the future.

This information is also important for the broader community to ensure we are an inclusive and welcoming place for all our citizens.

We will be watching as more national and local census data in this area is released to better understand the ways our country, city, and county are changing.

In the meantime, there are people and groups in our community who have begun to think about and respond to the changing demographics in our city and county. An excellent example of how Guelph can become a more welcoming community comes from the recently released Directory of Services for New Canadians in Guelph. This resource provides new Canadian with accessible information about local services and resources. Copies of this directory can be accessed online at www.volunteerguelphwellington.on.ca and linking to the “I want community information” section.

1. Statistics Canada (2006) http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/profiles/community/Details/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Code1=3523008&Geo2=PR&Code2=35&Data=Count&SearchText=guelph&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=Immigration%20and%20citizenship&Custom=
2. Statistics Canada (2006) http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/profiles/community/Details/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CD&Code1=3523&Geo2=PR&Code2=35&Data=Count&SearchText=guelph&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=Immigration%20and%20citizenship
3. Statistics Canada (2006) 2006 Census: Immigration, citizenship, language, mobility and migration http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/071204/d071204a.htm
4. Shellenberg, G. & Matheaux, H. (2007). Immigrants Perspectives on their first four in Canada: Highlights from three waves of the longitudinal survey of Immigrants to Canada http://www.statcan.ca/english/freepub/11-008-XIE/2007000/pdf/11-008-XIE20070009627.pdf

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