Oxford County’s new well-being plan takes next steps

An ambitious plan to create a safer and more inclusive Oxford County has taken a major step forward.

The Safe and Well Oxford Plan, described in a media release as the county’s “roadmap for building safe and inclusive communities,” has now been endorsed by Oxford County council, as well as the councils of its eight lower-tier municipalities.

County officials have also confirmed the appointments to the new Safe and Well Oxford steering committee – the group that will guide the plan towards its goals – through to the end of the current term of council.

“Our hope for this plan is to help create safer, healthier and more vibrant communities across Oxford, which is more important today than ever before” said Oxford County Warden Marcus Ryan, who is also serving on the steering committee. “Ongoing community engagement, education, awareness and participation is critical to the successful implementation of the Safe and Well Oxford Communities Plan.”

The first job of the committee during the coming six months will be establishing a “strong foundation” to “support and guide” the action coalitions, which county officials described as “issue-specific subcommittee” that will be working on the plan’s goals. Another key job will be gathering data and establishing the benchmarks that will be used to measure the plan’s effectiveness in the community.

Key to the plan, county officials said, is maintaining productive communication with community partners, local municipalities and Oxford County residents while the steering committees works towards its goals.

In the coming weeks, committee members will be reaching out to many of these community partners to talk about the goals and objectives of the Safe and Well oxford Plan and discuss how those goals might best be met.

“Helping to ensure that members of our community feel safe doesn’t begin and end with law enforcement. The way in which we respond to people facing complex needs, such as mental-health challenges, addictions and lack of secure housing, impacts the safety and well-being of both individuals and community,” South-West Oxford Mayor David Mayberry said. “Through the work of the Safe and Well Oxford steering committee, we hope to come together as a community with shared common goals to find ways to best support the organizations within our community that are providing these necessary supports.”

The committee’s meetings – held at the Oxford County Administration Building in Woodstock – are open to the public. Details on its minutes, agendas and meetings will be posted to the plan’s own website at safeandwelloxford.ca.

The genesis of the Safe and Well Oxford Plan was a county-wide planning process in September 2020 that involved every Oxford County municipality in response to new requirements in the updated Police Services Act. Spearheaded by an advisory committee that includes representatives from police and emergency services, health care, mental health care, social services, local school boards and community service providers, this planning process collected ideas from more than 1,400 members and front-line service providers across the county. These community members were asked about their thoughts on how to address the identified “priority risks” in Oxford – mental health, affordable housing, substance misuse, and equity, diversity and inclusion – to improve the health and safety of its residents.

This community safety plan will address these priorities through a “social development and prevention lens,” county officials said.

After this planning process, Oxford County council approved the plan’s terms of reference in February 2023 and appointed the current steering committee members – Ryan, South-West Oxford clerk Julie Middleton, community health center executive director Randy Peltz, Oxford human services director Kelly Black, Children’s Aid Society Oxford executive director Tina Diamond, Oxford strategic initiatives director Sarah Hamulecki and Oxford County Coun. Bernia Wheaton.