A plan to make Grey Bruce a better, safer place to live has been approved by the Counties and will soon be presented to the public.
The new Community Safety & Well-Being Plan (CSWBP) is mandated by the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services. Its aim is to better coordinate services in communities to reduce the volume of calls police are currently responding to.
A Bruce County release says the plan, “Sets out to achieve sustainable communities where everyone is safe, has a sense of belonging and opportunities to participate, and where individuals and families can meet their needs for education, health care, food, housing, income, and social and cultural expression. This will ultimately lead to a reduction in crime across the region.”
In order to come up with a local plan, Bruce and Grey Counties were joined by 16 lower-tier municipalities (all but Meaford), eight police services, 14 police services boards, three boards of education, and 29 education, health, social service agencies and community committees. According to Bruce County, this collaboration is the largest of its kind in Ontario.
Coming up with a plan included public engagement, risk identification and prioritization, and analysis of local data.
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Bruce County says the plan is, “Designed to leverage the good work already being done across the region by enhancing the collaboration and coordination of various organizations, committees, and initiatives.”
The next step in the process is to have each of the 16 municipalities approve the plan.
After that, local ‘action teams’ will begin tackling priority areas like Addiction and Substance Use, Mental Health, Crime Prevention, Housing and Homelessness, and Poverty and Income.
Bruce County says the plan will likely be posted for the public to see in January 2021 along with a report with local data and resident perceptions of safety and well-being in the community.
Meanwhile, some recent local initiatives involving community partnerships include the recently implemented Mobile Mental Health and Addiction Response Team (MMHART) in Grey Bruce communities that pairs police with mental health workers when responding to mental health calls.
Area police and hospitals also recently implemented changes that will make it easier for police to sign individuals apprehended under the Mental Health Act over to the care of hospitals.
Another new local initiative is a downtown Owen Sound walk-in location for the new “Housing, Outreach & Wellness Grey-Bruce (HOW)” which involves local hospitals, the Canadian Mental Health Association and local Mental Health and Addiction Services, as well as the Counties. It is at 854 2nd Ave. East and provides supports for people experiencing homelessness or precarious housing, and those with mental health or addiction struggles.