Volume 5 Issue 1
  
Special
Points of Interest
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Executive
Director’s Comments
We have had an exciting and busy year at the Peterborough
Social Planning Council with the completion of six research
projects including the Quality of Life Report and United
Way Community Profile. We continue to provide public education
related to poverty and social issues affecting citizens
and support community development initiatives focusing
on income security, food security, child care, affordable
housing, and health issues. Our work as a partner in the
creation of a Native Friendship Centre and Aboriginal Strategy
Circle of the Kawartha’s continues and that these
additional services will be available to citizens living
in the City and County of Peterborough. We are pleased
to be a partner with the City and County in moving the
Community Social Plan forward particularly in Havelock,
Belmont, Methuen and Harvey, Cavendish, Buckhorn.
I look
forward to the year ahead in continuing with our work to
provide relevant and useful social research, and create
a database of information that includes updated statistics
of the City and County of Peterborough. As well, we will
continue to provide information and a facilitative role
in supporting coalitions and community groups and act as
a catalyst for social change by promoting that “Social
Justice is in everyone’s interest”.
by Brenda Dales, Executive Director
Mayor’s Action Committee on Poverty
Reduction
The PSPC has been involved as a partner and facilitator
of the community public consultations on poverty that were
held in May and June of this year to discover first hand,
what the citizens felt were the needs of the people living
in poverty and the working poor as well as recommend some
short and long term possible actions to reduce poverty.
Our
task since then has been to compile the data, produce a report
and summary from those meetings. This information is now
available from the City in the form of the “Mayor’s
Task Force on Poverty Reduction” report and the “Mayor’s
Task Force on Poverty Reduction Executive Summary” report.
Currently we are a member of the Short Term Services Working
Group, which is facilitating and working with the City and
Social Service departments to inform the Mayor and Councillors
about some of the recommendations arising from the report
that can be put into action as quickly as possible.
This
is an ongoing effort by the community politicians, staff,
agencies and numerous volunteers who want to effect positive
change in the lives of people who are themselves working
to improve their situations.
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Watch for details of our upcoming
30th Anniversary
Celebration
March 2008,
to recognize our 30 years of service
and support to the Peterborough City and County! |
Our Mission
Through Research, community development, and
public education, the Peterborough Social Planning Council
works to build a strong community.
Our Vision
The vision of the PSPC is to be an organization
that facilitates active, broad based citizen participation
in shaping healthy communities in Peterborough City and County;
acts as a catalyst for positive, sustainable social change;
and promotes the understanding that social justice is in
everyone's interest. |
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PSPC
Participating in the Community
 Partnerships, Working Groups and Committees:
Aboriginal Strategy Circle of the Kawarthas
(ASCK): PSPC
is a resource and member, working together to identify the
service needs of Aboriginal People living in the Peterborough
area.
Community Initiative project: Facilitate the community
meetings in partnership with the city, a number of coalitions
and citizens to develop a model of outreach and support for
citizens that don’t have access or are not aware of
services, information, and resources.
Community Food Action
Group: Facilitate the monthly community meetings to discuss
how the community can continue to provide meals, and shelter
for people living in poverty. Working with faith groups to
develop mechanisms to offer meal programs in neighbourhoods
throughout Peterborough. Member of Poverty Trust Fund group
and Community Centre initiative. Started to develop an inventory
of Emergency Funding available in the community.
Committee
Member: Food for Kids and Health for Life - Health Unit;
LHIN Community Partners Network, Affordable Housing Review
Committee, Abuse Prevention of Older Adults Network, Peaceful
Communities Group (Chair), Community Social Plan Steering
Committee
Community Social Data Consortium: enables the Social
Planning Council and partners, including the City and County,
to access, cost-effectively, data from the Statistics Canada
and other departments.
Peterborough Oral Health Coalition: Active members, created a $10,000.00 Dental Health fund for
citizens who do not have access to dental care plans. Community
focal point for mobilizing those groups most affected by
issues into working and problem solving partnerships information
networks and action coalitions.
Healthy Aging Committee: working with a community partnership lead by St. Joseph’s
Care Foundation to plan a week of events supporting healthy
aging (June 2008)
Healthy Communities: committed to working
in partnership with agencies like the PCCHU to promote the
development of healthy communities.
World Planning Initiative: work with the Ontario Provincial Planners Institute to celebrate
World Planning Day on November 8, 2007.
 Community Benefits
- leadership in addressing social issues and poverty affecting
citizens
- research and policy analysis work for the City and
County of Peterborough, particularly on services that have
been downloaded skills to identify, report on and monitor
social issues and trends, a voice for social policy and
for people who are vulnerable and marginalized
- expertise
in bringing people together to address issues
- professional,
non-partisan research on social issues
- facilitate and support
opportunities for socio-economic development
Assisting the United Way
 In 2006, the Peterborough Social Planning Council (PSPC)
was asked to lead a community process that will assist the
United Way of Peterborough & District to develop:
- A communication
plan for the 2006 campaign and further,
- A long-range strategy
to address the urgent and the emergent social issues of
this community.
Through community consultation with the
United Way agencies, the PSPC was able to monitor the changing
trends and stresses documented in service delivery. This
information was then used by the United Way to build its’ 2006
campaign.
In 2007, the PSPC built on the work completed
the previous year and surveyed the United Way agencies
again to see if the issues identified in 2006 were still
current and/or if there were changes in the community that
must be documented.
The United Way of Peterborough and
Area utilizes the findings in their ongoing community planning.
Quality
of Life Report for the City and County of Peterborough
The intent of this report is to build on the work of
the Community Social Plan, provide a snapshot of how things
have changed in the 13 sectors, build a database, and more…
Some of the Key Findings:
Access to arts, culture, heritage and recreation: The
number of users of programs offered through the City of
Peterborough’s Recreation Division has increased
from 24,140 in 2000 to 27,890 in 2005.
Access to Health: The number of long-term care beds
has increased from 912 in 2000 to 1,082 in 2006
Accessibility: The number of handi-vans has increased
Child care and child development: The city of Peterborough
Social Services reports that the childcare programs service
approximately 3,000 children each year.
Community Involvement: In 2002, 2,402 people requested
criminal clearance checks for volunteering. This had increased
to 3,203 in 2005.
Economic/Income Security: Between 1971 and 2001
the number of acres classified as farmland declined by
61,179 acres in Peterborough County.
Environment: 48% of residential waste has been diverted
from landfill through recycling and composting programs.
Food Security: Food bank usage has increased by
over 34% in the Greater Peterborough Area.
Housing: In 2000 the average price of a single family
residence was $132,052. In 2005, this had increased to
$205,349.
Human Rights: The number of new clients served by
the New Canadians’ Centre has increased from 130
in 2002 to 206 in 2006.
Safe Communities: In 2005, the Peterborough Lakefield
Community Police Service seized a total value of street
drugs worth $17,623,335
Seniors/Aging: In 2005/06 Community Care Peterborough
delivered 30,600 meal units (frozen and meals-on-wheels)
Transportation: The City of Peterborough transit
system underwent significant improvements as of the fall
of 2006 which introduced Sunday service, new routes and
extended evening service.
Copies of the full report are available for $10 print
or download the summary from our website Publications.
PSPC Participating in the
Community
What we have accomplished
Research Reports
- Quality of Life
Report, City and County of Peterborough, January 2007
- Prince
of Wales Study — To create an integrated service system
model that to maximize capacity for at risk students to be
successful at school, January 2007
- Don’t Tell Me Ask
Me — A Participatory Research Project Aboriginal
Needs Assessment Report, June 2006
- Consultation Report
on Persons with Disabilities research and Community Resource
Guide for the Council for Persons With Disabilities and
the Workforce Development Board, April 2006
- United Way
Member Agency Community Profile , August 2006
- Best Start
Child Care Needs Assessment, December 2007
- Completing Information
and Data registry for Children Services tables in the four
counties for the Ministry of Community and Social Services
Request to complete a Poverty Cost Study for the City and
County of Peterborough.
- Child Care Service Plan 2007
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PSPC Participating
in the Community
Social Research
Undertake independent research on social trends
needs and issues relevant to a variety of constituencies in
their communities
Community Development
Facilitate and support
positive change in partnership with community groups and individuals.
Systems Planning
Coordination and evaluation of program and
service delivery to the definition of service needs
Community
Partnerships& Collaboration
Providing a community focal
point for mobilizing those groups most affected by issues into
working and problem solving partnerships, information networks
and action coalitions.
Policy Analysis & Development
Providing
access to both professional and voluntary expertise on a wide
range of social, economic and cultural issues enables us to
provide sophisticated policy analysis and research-based proposals
to public policy-makers at the local, provincial and federal
levels.
Convening & Facilitating
Provide a non-threatening "meeting
place" for discussion and resolution of difficult community
issues. Facilitate the building of community consensus on issues
and/or shared actions.
Community Awareness & Education
Promote broader and deeper community understanding on social
development issues, which affect certain groups or the general
quality of community life. |
Ongoing & Upcoming
Fundraisers
 Garden Cards at a 20% Discount
The Garden Card costs $20.00 and you receive a 20% discount
on gardening materials at participating Garden Centres and
Greenhouses from January to December 31st 2008. Each Centre
has their own list of what qualifies for the 20% discount at
their establishments and there’s always plenty of variety.
The participants for 2008 are:
Blossom Hill Services, Burley’s
Gardening Pick Me Ups, Gardens Plus, Griffin’s Greenhouses,
Johnston’s Greenhouse & Garden Centre, Peterboro
Landscape Supply and Rural Routes at the Peterborough Co-op.
Buy your card at The Avant-Garden Shop, Burley’s Gardening
Pick Me Ups, Gardens Plus, Happenstance Books & Yarns in
Lakefield, Peterboro Landscape Supply, Titles Bookstore and
of course, our office.
Think of that gardener in your life
(friend, mom, dad, grandparents, boss, teacher) and surprise
them with a year of garden supply shopping, for everything
from spring bulbs to Christmas poinsettias!
Another gift idea for you...
T-Shirts
The PSPC has launched
a new item for fund and friend raising. We want you to look
great while you support us throughout the community!
We have
quality T-Shirts available with our tag line of
“social
justice is in everyone’s interest”
They are for
sale at a cost of $15.00 (no tax) in sizes Small/Medium/Large/XL.
The colour is Yellow Haze and is equally appealing to men
and women.
The T’s are available at our office at 187 Simcoe
Street (across from the Bus Terminal).
We often have them featured
in our Community Window. Come by and check them out in person.
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PSPC 187 Simcoe Street Peterborough
ON K9H 2H6 (705) 743-5915 Fax (705) 748-6174 pspc@pspc.on.ca
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