Physical activity promotion in Quebec primary schools: equity, intervention practices, and areas for improvement

Schools are pivotal in promoting physical activity (PA) among children through supportive environments and targeted programming. Despite this, in 2024, only 39% of Canadian children met PA guidelines, with inequity linked to socioeconomic status. This study describes the availability of PA activities and facilities in Quebec primary schools according to school deprivation levels and the extent to which school-based PA health promotion interventions (PA-HPIs) incorporated 16 empirically supported components and processes. In Project PromeSS, structured telephone interviews were conducted from 2016 to 2019 with key informants (primarily school principals) across 171 Quebec primary schools. PA activities and facilities were generally perceived as available and adequate across all deprivation levels. Nearly all schools (98%) reported PA-HPIs aligned with their mission and values; 96% addressed multiple core competencies; and 86% involved staff in planning. However, only 13% engaged students or peers in intervention development, 35% provided training for internal facilitators, and 35% conducted formal evaluations of PA-HPIs. Availability of PA activities and facilities across deprivation levels may relate to provincial efforts to promote resource equity, although policy impact cannot be inferred from these data. Enhancing underused empirically supported components (student engagement, staff training, program evaluation, and multi-session interventions) could improve the effectiveness and sustainability of school-based PA-HPIs.