Community Safety and Well-Being for Huron Website Launch

HURON COUNTY, ON (June 24, 2024) – The Community Safety and Well-Being for Huron’s website is live. The website highlights the four priority areas outlined in the Community Safety and Well-Being (CSWB) Plan for Huron as required by the Community Safety and Policing Act, 2019 as well as local supports identified in relation to the priority areas.

All nine lower-tier municipalities in Huron County have collaborated across different sectors with partner organizations to make communities more inclusive, resilient, and where all residents thrive. Through this collaboration, the CSWB Plan for Huron was developed and have identified the following four priority areas for action based on their research and community engagement: mental health and addictions, housing stability and homelessness, domestic and family violence, and community security.

The Plan addresses the root causes of crime and complex social issues by focusing holistically on social development and risk prevention by utilizing a social determinants of health lens to recognize the social, economic, and environmental conditions that affect health, safety, and well-being. By addressing the four priority areas, the Plan aims to prevent crime and enhance safety and community well-being by addressing issues before they arise or incidents occur.

More information about the four priorities, the Plan, the CSWB Committee, and local supports are available on the website: www.cswbhuron.ca

Phase One: Working Group

Phase One of plan development involved establishing a Working Group of representatives from the nine member municipalities. The Working Group was tasked to then establish an organizing structure, gather community resources, and develop a residential survey with the Canadian Municipal Network on Crime Prevention.

Phase Two: Subcommittees

During Phase Two, several Subcommittees were struck and tasked with taking a deep dive into specific risk areas of focus. These Subcommittees/risk areas included:
• Education
• Seniors/Adults with Disabilities
• Poverty and Housing
• Crime
• Medical and Physical Health
• Children and Youth
• Mental Health
• Addictions

Phase Three: Advisory Committee

The Huron CSWB Advisory Committee had a broad mandate to apply a cross-sector, interdisciplinary lens to known, emergent, and anticipated community and system-level issues. This diverse Advisory Committee came together with cross-sector representation to identify and reduce risk factors that can contribute to individuals engaging in or  becoming victims of crime. Working together is not a new approach for the nine municipalities in Huron; however, the
CSWB planning process expanded on collective impact, cross-sector structures, and processes in place to leverage the best possible outcomes in improving safety and well-being of all residents.

Phase Four: Public Consultations and Stakeholder Interviews

To help identify local risks, partners involved in the development of the CSWB Plan in Huron conducted wide-ranging public consultations seeking perspectives on experiences, priority areas, challenges, and strategies for solutions. Service providers, youth, families, and other stakeholders were engaged through this process. In total, more than 1,500 survey responses, consultations, and discussions were analyzed to identify perceptions and feelings of community safety and well-being in Huron. Consultation work also sought to identify work already underway in Huron to address specific issues, to avoid duplication, identify strengths, resources, best practices, and capture opportunities
for future action. 

Utilizing survey and consultation findings to identify key themes, supplemented by a review of the literature and focus group discussions, four Priority Areas have been established to address community safety and well-being in Huron County:

• Mental Health and Addictions
• Housing and Homelessness
• Domestic and Family Violence
• Community Safety and Security

An Implementation Plan is in the process of development to address the four priority areas for action. 

An oversight committee with multi-sectoral representation and reflective of the community has been formed in Huron County to guide initiatives and address the four priority areas of action. 

The oversight committee has identified a Chair: Deputy Mayor Marg Anderson (Central Huron Council) and Co-Chair: Councillor Anita Snobelen (ACW Council). 

For more information about the Community Safety and Well-Being Plan Oversight Committee, please contact Michaela Johnston, CEMC, Accessibility and Health & Safety Manager, Town of Goderich at 519-524-8344 x212 or mjohnston@goderich.ca 

• Priority Area Map