The Substance Supports in Neighbourhoods Accessed through Police Partnerships (SSNAPP) is branching out into different neighbourhoods.
As part of the SSNAPP project, neighbourhood safety plans have been launched for community members in the downtown core along with South Central Windsor, Walkerville, South Walkerville and East Windsor.
SSNAPP was announced in the fall of 2022 and is a partnership between Windsor police, Windsor-Essex County Health Unit and the city.
It's a $1.5-million project funded by a three-year Community Safety and Policing Grant that aims to strengthen community safety and well-being by addressing local concerns and fostering a collaborative approach to crime prevention.
A key objective of the project is creating neighbourhood safety plans tailored to meet community needs in areas with higher incidences of mental health crises and substance use.
WECHU Chief Executive Officer Dr. Ken Blanchette believes the neighbourhood safety plans will make a significant difference in the community.
"We get questions all the time about what am I suppose to do or how am I suppose to address the issues that we're seeing in our neighbourhoods," says Dr. Blanchette. "So we've had 27 workshops already set in place and it's not only for members in the community, the citizens, it's for those that are working with those individuals that are suffering from mental health and substance use pieces."
"It comes down to really getting to the root cause right, really being able to affect change earlier on and even have the knowledge on how to affect people that are later on into that journey and substance use," says Dr. Blanchette.
Dr. Blanchette says they want continue the work throughout the community, providing accessibility to all and provide information to all.
"The website is going to be a big piece for accessing it but having it in place into institutions within those neighbourhoods it will be great," says Dr. Blanchette. "So either barcode or scan it or the information is right there for people to be able to read so than you can act quicker and have a greater affect on the community."
According to the Neighbourhood Safety Plans website, the plans are designed to offer guidance for scenarios that may arise in neighbourhoods such as crucial resources including mental health, substance use, and and housing resources.
The plans also provide guidance on who to call during emergency or non-emergency situations.