Model advances public safety, connects people to services in Princeton
People in Princeton will be better served by a collaborative approach to complex social challenges that brings together a diverse range of front-line workers to deliver faster access to services for individuals at risk of harm or victimization.
Safe Community Situation Tables gather front-line workers from the public safety, health and social service sectors to identify high-risk individuals and rapidly connect them to services and supports they need, before they experience a negative or traumatic event.
“Safe Community Situation Tables are a vital tool for putting people first in our approach to public safety,” said Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General. “By uniting agencies and front-line workers, we’re not just preventing harm, we’re actively working to enhance the lives of individuals by providing timely access to essential services and supports necessary for a brighter, safer future.”
Princeton will be one of 36 communities with Safe Community Situation Tables operating throughout the province. Members of the Princeton table are expected to complete their training and onboarding in the coming months. The partners will meet weekly to address issues pertaining to their community, such as mental health and addictions, homelessness and poverty.
“Initiatives like Safe Community Situation Tables ensure that people in Princeton can quickly access the services they need to succeed, the people in the community keeping us all safe are well connected, and we all can work together to help make sure people don’t fall through the cracks” said Roly Russell, MLA for Boundary-Similkameen. “By empowering community agencies to work together, we’re not just addressing immediate challenges, but also supporting vulnerable individuals, promoting overall well-being and building a more connected society.”
Safe Community Situation Tables provide a structured, collaborative approach to managing complex and urgent circumstances by bringing together key groups and using systematic processes to mitigate risk and develop action plans to respond more effectively to the needs of each individual. Furthermore, aggregate data analysis helps policy-makers assess gaps and risks in their communities.
“The Town of Princeton is excited for this opportunity,” said Spencer Coyne, mayor of Princeton. “Rural communities have been struggling with connecting individuals to services for the past 15-plus years. This funding shows that by working together with rural partners like Princeton, the provincial government is listening to us.”
The tables are considered an effective way to improve community safety and well-being by enabling community front-line workers to:
- proactively identify risks through real-time information sharing;
- reduce long-term demand on emergency and police resources;
- leverage and co-ordinate existing community assets and relationships between health supports, victim services, and culturally safe support and services;
- plan and deliver collaborative interventions before an incident occurs; and
- reduce increased risk in people’s lives.
The Province is supporting Princeton with a $70,000 grant to assist with implementation. Since 2018, more than $3 million has been provided to B.C. regions and communities to facilitate local Safe Community Situation Tables, Indigenous intervention circles and other related initiatives. There are 44 funded situation tables and intervention circles in B.C. Thirty-six of these are operational and the other eight are being implementated.
Safe Community Situation Tables are advancing the Safer Communities Action Plan’s goal of creating safe, healthy communities for everyone. The tables build on the programs, services and initiatives the Province has undertaken or implemented to strengthen enforcement to break the cycle of violence and crime, and to strengthen services to keep communities safe and healthy.
Learn More:
For more information about situation tables, visit: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/justice/criminal-justice/policing-in-bc/collaborative-public-safety-program/situation-tables
For more information about ways the Province is making communities safer for everyone, visit: https://strongerbc.gov.bc.ca/safer-communities