Community Background:

The Grassland community has a population of 64,900, with approximately 40% made up of those between the ages of 15 and 29. There are 54% males and 46% females in the community. The majority of residents living in Grassland were born in Grassland, with only 20% coming from another community, province or country. As a result, most of the population is English speaking; however, there are some smaller neighbourhoods with a strong presence of French-speaking individuals. Most residents of Grassland are single, with 30% of the population being married or in a common-law relationship; there is also a high presence of single-parent households. Most of the land is residential, with several retail businesses in the downtown core. Households living in Grassland have an average annual income of $65,000.

Community Engagement:

To support the identification of local risks, partners involved in the development of Grassland’s community safety and well-being plan hosted two community engagement sessions at the community centre. The first session had 25 participants, and the second session had 53 participants. Each of these sessions were open to the public, and included representation from a variety of agencies/organizations from a wide range of sectors, including but not limited to local elementary and secondary schools, university, hospital, community agencies, private businesses, addictions support centres, mental health centres, long-term care homes, retirement homes and child welfare organizations. Members of the public and vulnerable groups also attended, including youth and seniors themselves. A number of open-ended questions were posed at the engagement sessions to encourage and facilitate discussion, such as: What is the Grassland community doing well to ensure the safety and well-being of its residents? What are challenges/issues in the Grassland community and opportunities for improvement?

To receive more specific information regarding risks, planning partners conducted 14 one-on-one meetings with community agencies/organizations (some attended the town-hall meeting and some did not). These meetings were initiated by the municipal coordinator, as she grew up in the community and already had a strong working relationship with many of these agencies/organizations. Questions were asked such as: What are the barriers to success that you see in your organization? What are the risks most often faced by the individuals and families that you serve? Agencies/organizations that were engaged during this phase include: