By Charlene Tebbutt

Community Mobilization

Crime reduction and social issues program to shut down

Apr 2, 2019 | 4:56 PM

A local community program that analyzes the key factors behind crime and social issues is shutting down in Prince Albert.

The Centre of Responsiblity, or COR, will cease operations June 28. The program is one component of a two-part model under Community Mobilization Prince Albert that also includes the HUB, which brings community and government agencies together to support and engage at-risk individuals and families on issues such as poverty, addictions and mental health.

The provincial government has announced it will take over operations for the COR. The program will shift to a provincial model under the Saskatchewan Ministry of Corrections and Policing.

Tom Michaud with the COR said the decision comes after months of work to update the program’s strategic plan. A review of operations found there just isn’t enough resources to keep it going long term, he said.

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The move will mean the loss of three jobs in Prince Albert in analytical and administrative areas, he said.

“We just did not have the human resources available to us here in Prince Albert to confidently move forward with the strategic plan, so we made recommendations to government to move away from the current COR model,” Michaud said. “I think that people have seen the value of the work that COR has done across the province, it’s had far-reaching impacts, and recognizing that the COR has the potential to respond to needs across the province, our current model was not able to respond to that.”

Michaud said the HUB program will continue to operate in Prince Albert. The HUB strategy was first piloted in Prince Albert and has long been touted as an example for other communities.

Drew Wilby with the ministry said nothing has been finalized in terms of how the provincial COR will be structured, but the idea is a good one that can be implemented on a provincial scale. Wilby said it’s important to have a COR in place to continue working with the various HUB groups across the province.

“Will it be the same as what Prince Albert had? Probably not, but will it draw on a lot of the lessons that have been learned out of the P.A. COR, absolutely,” Wilby said. “We know that the HUBs continue to need support.”

Michaud said he doesn’t anticipate a gap in services with the COR moving under a provincial umbrella and said any projects currently in the queue will still go ahead.

“I think the work that the COR has done now will be a good starting point for a renewed COR model going forward,” he said. “It was a challenging decision but at the same time, I see this as a recognition of the growth that we’ve seen in the COR model and realizing that its potential goes beyond what we can currently allocate.”

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Charlene.tebbutt@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @CharleneTebbutt