Healthy Canadians and Communities Fund: Design phase
The Healthy Canadian and Communities Fund (HCCF) funded the design phase of projects that aimed to build the foundation for project implementation. Design funding helped engage communities and partners.
- Last updated: 2025-07-04
On this page
- About the design phase
- Who was engaged during the design phase
- What made for a successful design phase
- What we learned
- What's next for design phase projects
About the design phase
The Healthy Canadians and Communities Fund (HCCF) is a Public Health Agency of Canada funding program. The HCCF funds projects that help prevent chronic disease. The projects we support are multi-sectoral. They include many sectors like government, private industry, and non-profits.
Organizations can apply for funding at various phases:
- design
- implement
- scale
Learn about phases of the HCCF funding.
Starting in March 2021, organizations were able to submit proposals for design phase funding. The goal of design phase funding was to support projects with potential to:
- enable health behaviour changes in priority populations (groups of people who face health inequalities and are at higher risk of chronic disease)
- develop multi-sectoral partnerships
Design funding gave organizations capacity, time and money. Funds were used to create partnerships and engage priority populations. This was essential for strong, evidence-informed and inclusive projects.
The HCCF invested approximately $10 million to support 20 projects. Funding began in early 2022 and all design phase projects ended by July 2024. Most projects lasted 24 months.
List of projects funded by the HCCF.
Who was engaged during the design phase
13,294
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Hover over the chart for a description of the data.
Notes
- * Note that data were not available for all participants. Participants may belong to more than 1 priority population.
Hover over the chart for a description of the data.
What made for a successful design phase
This section highlights factors that helped design phase projects succeed. Hover over the cards for a description, or click them to go to the full overview.
Co-design
Working together with communities and partners to create solutions that meet their needs
Engagement
Involving community members in meaningful ways throughout the project
Collaboration
Building strong partnerships between organizations and community members
Community
Focusing on community needs and building local capacity
Results
Measuring and sharing the impact of community-led solutions
Co-designing with communities and partners
Projects directly engaged members of the community and other subject-matter experts. Co-design encouraged innovation, inclusion and shared decision making. This led to projects that reflected cultural values and addressed inequalities.
Co-designed projects included:
- agreements that made sure equity was part of collaboration
- Memorandums of Understanding to clarify roles, responsibilities and partnership goals
- advisory groups and guidance committees to oversee the project and make informed decisions
Co-designed example - Food Uniting Neighbours (f.u.n.)
The University of Guelph worked with Community Advisors in the Onward Willow community. They co-designed ways to increase food access and healthy eating. Community Advisors named the project Food Uniting Neighbours (f.u.n.).
More than half of the Onward Willow community members who we engaged in our programming were:
- people of colour
- recent immigrants
- people struggling with monthly living costs
Community Advisors lead discussions to find solutions like transportation and grocery gift cards. These were evaluated using focus groups and pilot testing.
The community was very satisfied with the solutions. One community member said, “Thank you, your credits are helping me and my son to afford to eat better … Thank you, great program.”
Engaging priority populations
Organizations worked with priority populations to better understand the needs and issues in the community. Engagement happened at all stages of design, from concept to evaluation. Project activities included:
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Strengthening existing relationships with priority populations. This built trust and inclusive project development. People with lived experience helped to challenge biases and guide decisions. Community needs and evidence were assessed through:
- environmental scans (gathering and analyzing information about internal and external conditions)
- literature reviews (collecting and summarizing existing research)
- evidence mapping (visually organizing existing research)
- Creating safe spaces to discuss health issues and reduce stigma.
- Engaging Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Keepers to share sacred tobacco teachings.
By working with priority populations, organizations fostered ownership, empowerment and commitment.
Engagement example - Strengthening Community Roots: Anchoring Newcomers in Wellness and Sustainability (SCORE!)
McMaster University created Strengthening Community Roots: Anchoring Newcomers in Wellness & Sustainability (SCORE!). Their goal is to promote healthy active living in newcomer children and families. Their population is in Hamilton's Riverdale neighborhood. The program was primarily for low-income, racialized immigrant families. It included those of South Asian, Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern ancestry.
SCORE! was co-developed with the community to benefit families with young children. The project was adapted to suit local needs. Culture was factored into the design, and the project overcame language barriers. A series of community consultations included:
- household surveys
- photovoice (participants take and share photos to share their experiences)
- gallery walks (participants view, reflect upon, and discuss displayed work or ideas)
- co-design workshops
The consultations revealed challenges to being physically active. This information helped SCORE! design a program to promote physical activity in several ways.
Collaborating with diverse partners
Projects worked with partners from many sectors. This improved information sharing between groups with diverse points of view. It also encouraged cooperation between individuals and organizations. Multi-sectoral partners included:
- municipal and provincial governments
- community organizations
- healthcare providers
- researchers and academic institutions
Partners often had existing credibility and trust with their communities and networks. Projects used this to reach and recruit participants. Partners also had unique experience that helped build effective health interventions.
Collaboration example - Know How to Take Care+
Montréal Métropole en santé (MMS) created the Know How to Take Care+ project. It runs food, sports and physical activity services. The project uses the Gender Based Analysis Plus (GBA+) approach.
This project engaged many diverse and committed partners. It created an Advisory Committee of 10 governmental, non-governmental and academic organizations. The Advisory Committee shared expertise, feedback and research results.
For this project, priority populations include immigrant and racialized families, and 2SLGBTQI+ communities. MMS partnered with community organizations that work with these populations. Priority populations also had experience with the organizations. This collaboration facilitated recruitment and follow-up, and strengthened the sense of belonging among project participants.
Continuing community involvement
At times project activities led to ongoing partnerships within and beyond communities. Networks created to share knowledge continued outside the design phase. Partners kept working together and advocating.
In some cases, partnerships improved practices. For example, some organizations brought social prescribing into their work. Social prescribing involves connecting people to community programs and activities that improve health.
Organizations shared what they learned during the design phase through:
- conferences
- webinars
- publications
- websites
- newsletters
- social media
- storytelling campaigns
This increased the momentum and credibility of the projects with partners. Sharing the value and impact of a project builds ongoing support.
Community involvement example - Community Advised Smoking Cessation
Lung Association of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island (LungNSPEI) led the Community Advised Smoking Cessation project. Their goal was to understand ways to reduce tobacco use. The project worked with 3 priority populations:
- 2SLGBTQI+
- First Nations
- lower-income communities
Tobacco cessation programs were co-designed with each priority group. LungNSPEI also co-designed education and awareness campaigns. Results were shared with partners, stakeholders and the wider community. Online promotion, webinars, and in-person events were used.
Following the design phase, there are plans to keep sharing the results with government and community partners. LungNSPEI continues to advocate for change in programs that already exist in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.
What were the results
Design phase funding gave organizations time and money to build the foundations for effective health interventions. During the design phase, organizations used:
- surveys
- interviews
- focus groups
- storytelling
- prototypes that are adapted based on feedback
Projects that went through the design phase created interventions based on evidence. These projects are better positioned to be implemented successfully. The results show the importance of investing early on to help organizations in design planning.
Result examples - Healthy Aging Connection intervention, smoking cessation
HCCF funded a Canadian Frailty Network (CFN) project. They created the Healthy Aging Connection intervention. The intervention is in the Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington region.
Initially, the CFN wanted more programming for older adults. This was based on the belief that older adults needed more healthy living programs. Research and feedback during the design phase showed otherwise. The issue was not a lack of programs. Rather, older adults were unaware of existing programs. With this information, the CFN pivoted and designed a different intervention. It focuses on communication and awareness rather than creating new programs.
This illustrates how the design phase creates programs that focus on community needs.
Black Health Alliance and the Centre for Addition and Mental Health (CAMH) worked together to design a project to help Black communities use less tobacco. The project is culturally responsive; it considers the experiences and needs of Black communities.
CAMH has existing smoking cessation programs. HCCF funding helped these programs be tailored to diverse Black communities. This was critical given the historical mistrust between the healthcare system and Black communities. Through the design phase, CAMH collaborated with Black-led, Black-serving and Black-focused organizations. These organizations led the program design. CAMH worked closely with community members to validate findings. The work ensured all points of view were accurately represented.
The program they designed was informed by Black communities. This led to changes in CAMH’s tobacco cessation programs so they were better suited to their communities.
What we learned
The design phase was valuable and unique. It helped organizations:
- build trust and relationships
- engage with communities and partners
- put resources into project design
Most project design phases lasted 24 months. Two years was enough time to engage with communities in a meaningful way and design projects.
Flexibility is key for design funding. Organizations appreciated meeting with HCCF staff to modify projects as needed. Other elements of the HCCF's processes were not as flexible. Particularly, budget and reporting requirements were less flexible. This proved challenging for some organizations.
Other challenges included:
- securing research ethics board approval
- having limited human resources
- recruiting priority populations
- addressing concerns about future funding and its effect on implementation
Overall, organizations were grateful for the rare opportunity to focus on building trust and relationships, bringing together partners. They appreciated the support to carefully consider ways to implement their projects.
What's next for design phase projects
We invited all organizations to submit a proposal in the spring of 2024 for up to 3 more years of funding. Funding is for implementing and evaluating projects created during the design phase.
Seventeen of twenty organizations applied. As of January 2025, 6 organizations were funded, with projects starting in the winter of 2025.
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