The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

'H H alto n unveils new s a fe ty and w ell-b e in g p lan by M arta Marychuk Oakville Beaver Staff CD o o Halton Region' s new Community Safety and Well Being Plan takes aim at crime and social issues. It provides a framework for identifying risks and addressing crime and social issues more comprehensively and was the topic of a symposium Monday, Nov. 27, at the Oakville Conference Centre. Developed by a working group, jointly-led by Halton Region and Halton Regional Police Services (HRPS), the plan is in response to the Ontario Working Group on Collaborative, RiskDriven Community Safety and the Ontario Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services. In 2014, the Ontario Working Group released the report New Directions in Community Safety. In 2016, Halton Region and HRPS formed a group to develop a community plan in conjunction with more than 20 community partners. Halton Regional Council approved that plan, in draft last April and in final form this month. "Policing has changed," Halton Police Chief Stephen Tanner told more than 300 at the symposium. "It has to. Every business must evolve or they will fail." Tanner dubbed the new Halton plan a means to address complex social issues, such as Canada' s opioid crisis and mental health issues, comprehensively, and with community stakeholders . Marie-France Lalonde, Ontario' s Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services, said the Safer Ontario Act would modernize delivery of community safety and allow municipalities leadership in addressing local needs. "Ontario is not a one-sizefits-all province," said Lalonde. With the nature and role of police having changed since the Police Services Act was written in 1990, Lalonde Halton Region unveiled its new Community Safety and Well-Being Plan at the Oakville Conference Centre on Monday, Nov. 27. Marie-France Lalonde, Minis ter of Community Safety and Correctional Services was one of many participants at the event. | Halton Region photo said the new legislation shifts from a reactive response to a collaborative framework. Lalonde called it breaking new ground while admitting critics call the changes "privatization" of police services. "This is a fairly strong piece of legislation," added Stephen Beckett, assistant deputy minister, Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services, Public Safety Division. Beckett said Ontario has been working with Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island to make Community Safety and Well-Being Plans a national program. Once the changes are law, all Ontario municipalities will be mandated to develop Community Safety and Well Being Plans, said Beckett. He noted a lot of people would be watching what Halton does as it could be a leader in this project. Halton Regional Chair Gary Carr said Halton was the safest community in Canada for the past 10 years. "We're very proud of that." He said community safety and well-being planning is about proactively responding to issues such as mental health, neighbourhood safety, addiction, housing and homelessness, social isolation and violence against women. "The Community Safety and Well-Being Plan is a made-in-Halton approach to community safety and well being," said Carr, adding it enables first-responders to proactively respond so people in need get the right response at the right time. It recognizes complex risks to community safety and well being cannot be addressed by one sector alone -- but that a multi-sector response, involving policing, public health, social services, education, health care and community-based human service agencies, is most effective. For more on the plan, visit halton.ca/safetyandwell-being. O 'Connor M acLeod Hanna L L P Welcomes Blair L. Botsford BHANDARI Family Dentistry ic J84 BRING iN YOUR FAMILY FOR A CHECK-UP AT OUR NEW MODERN CLiNIC Dr. Vineet Bhandari provides top quality dental care in a friendly, caring environment with his team of dental professionals. He uses modern painless laser dentistry for cosmetic and preventive dental treatments and helps his patients to achieve optimum dental health. It is our goal to help create and maintain a beautiful smile. Dentistry is a positive investment in your health, your confidence and your appearance. a c tua l patient tr ea tm ents by dr . bhan da ri This patient went from a consultation to finished teeth in just a couple weeks! We can change lives... Call us to set up your free consultation. O'Connor MacLeod Hanna LLP, Halton's full service law firm, is pleased to welcome Blair L. Botsford to our team of specialized professionals. Blair is an experienced wills and estates lawyer who understands the needs of her clients. Blair brings over 20 years of experience, which includes running her own firm as well as being a partner at two national Canadian law firms and practicing in the Bermuda office of an international law firm. This has allowed Blair the opportunity to work with a wide range of clients on matters of varying complexity and to provide clients with sound advice and sensible solutions. Blair has focused her practice in the area of Wills, powers of attorney, planning for incapacity, disability planning, estate administration and probate, trusts, estate and business succession planning and related taxation throughout her career. Her practice also includes dispute resolution, guardianship applications as well as mediation and facilitation. Blair joins us as the head of our Wills, Trusts and Estates department, where she will be able to use her experience to further refine our team of fine lawyers. Please feel free to contact Blair with any of your will, trust or estate issues. Blair can be reached directly at: 905.849.5027 Email: botsford@omh.ca Porcelain Veneers Crowns and Bridges Teeth Whitening Restorations > Composite Resin Dental Implants Laser Dentistry Periodontist on site O 'C o n n o r M acLeo d H a n n a llp 700 Kerr Street, Oakville, ON, L6K 3W5 www.omh.ca Call to book your appointment or consultation. Monday to Friday 7:30 - 5:00. Evening and Saturday appointments available. Palermo Professional Centre 2525 Old Bronte Rd., Suite 470 Oakville (at Dundas Street) · www.bhandaridental.com