CMHA WW Receives Gatekeeper Project Funding to Help Vulnerable Seniors

Ontario is investing more than $200,360 to help the Guelph Police Service, Canadian Mental Health Association – Waterloo Wellington (CMHA-WW) and Victim Services Wellington work with local partners to build a safer, stronger community in Guelph and Wellington County.

Funding from the Ontario Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services’ Proceeds of Crime Front Line Policing Grant (POC-FLP) and the Safer and Vital Communities Grant will help set up the following programs:

• Community Response to Human Trafficking (Guelph Police Service) – $63,900 – The goal of this project is to eliminate and prevent human trafficking and to assist victims of human trafficking in Guelph.  Activities include training for community stakeholders and police, and conducting undercover operations to identify and support victims of human trafficking and to identify offenders.
• Gatekeeper Project (CMHA-WW) – $69,913 – An education/awareness campaign that focuses on community service personnel who have regular contact with vulnerable elderly adults and/or those at risk of elder abuse or neglect.
• Human Trafficking Support Worker (Victim Services Wellington) – $66,500 – A human trafficking support worker will work with the Guelph Police Service and OPP Wellington to provide crisis support for victims of human trafficking, including comprehensive case management and assistance in navigating the agencies/systems in place to support them.

These are three of 52 community projects funded under the SVC Grant that will help enhance safety and well-being across the province.

The two grants will provide a total of nearly $4 million in funding across Ontario to support community groups and police in working together to develop community safety plans and prevent crime. This year’s grants are based on the theme: “Creating a Safer Ontario through Community Collaboration,” and provides funding to police services, community-based organizations, First Nations Chiefs and Band Councils for collaborative projects that address local community safety and well-being priorities.

Investing in community safety and well-being is part of the government’s economic plan to build Ontario up and deliver on its number-one priority to grow the economy and create jobs. The four-part plan includes helping more people get and create the jobs of the future by expanding access to high-quality college and university education. The plan is making the largest infrastructure investment in hospitals, schools, roads, bridges and transit in Ontario’s history and is investing in a low-carbon economy driven by innovative, high-growth, export-oriented businesses. The plan is also helping working Ontarians achieve a more secure retirement.

QUOTES

“My constituency office has been receiving an increasing number of letters and emails concerning the issues of Human Trafficking and vulnerable elderly adults who are at risk of abuse or neglect. I am especially pleased then that our government is investing more than $200,360 to fund three programs that will help the Guelph Police Service, Canadian Mental Health Association – Waterloo Wellington Dufferin and Victim Services Wellington to address these important issues and help build a safer community in Guelph and Wellington County. “

–        Liz Sandals, MPP for Guelph

“Our government recognizes that a collaborative approach to community safety and well-being works, and the 52 projects funded support our efforts. By working together, police, service providers and community groups are better able to meet the needs of our communities and ensure that individuals at risk are able to access the services they need. These grants help make that possible and help us to build safer, stronger communities across the province.”

–       David Orazietti, Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services

“This funding emphasizes the importance of community partnerships to assist with enhancing the safety in our communities for seniors and recognizing it is a community responsibility. Along with our partners CMHA, St. Joseph’s Health Centre Guelph, Police, Paramedics, Alzheimer Society, and Senior Centers including the Evergreen we will now be able to strengthen our community by supporting both the public and private sectors in recognizing isolation and/or a vulnerable situation for seniors and provide business owners and the overall community with information that can help them to support the vulnerable senior. This funding will provide education for enhanced awareness for formal services within health care and across the community and also informal services such as concerned citizens, church groups, pastoral care, postal carriers and anyone who has regular contact with seniors.

Thank you to the Province of Ontario for supporting this very valuable project for our community.”

–        Jane McKinnon Wilson, Waterloo Wellington Geriatric Systems Coordinator

QUICK FACTS

• The POC-FLP Grant is funded by seized assets that have been forfeited to the government as proceeds of crime following criminal prosecutions.
• Since 2010, this POC-FLP Grant has provided more than $16 million in funding for 184 community safety projects.
• Established in 2004, the Safer and Vital Communities Grant has allocated approximately $8.6 million to support local crime prevention initiatives.

LEARN MORE

• Read Community Safety and Well-being in Ontario – A Snapshot of Local Voices
• This year’s Proceeds of Crime Front Line Policing Grant projects http://news.ontario.ca/m/41853
• Safer and Vital Communities Grant projects http://news.ontario.ca/m/41851