Kamloops City Council agreed in principal to provide $40,000 to create a new social plan, something the city’s Social & Community Development Supervisor says is long overdue.
The current document was prepared in 2009 and Natalie Serl says it’s overdue to revisit this plan as a lot has changed in the last decade. “It was also written before the opioid crisis hit and I think it’s certainly time to include matters relating to that issue, to mental health and substance use a whole because things have certainly changed, the social landscape has changed, drug use has changed. The other component that I see is missing from our plan is there wasn’t any mention of truth & reconciliation.”
She says prevention is a thing that we should be able to implement in our social plan. She says right now we see a lot of responses to symptoms in crisis and this plan will help them advocate for what needs to be different. “Something specific when it comes to mental health and substance use would be advocating for a sobering centre to help with detox, alcohol use, combinations that people have of the different types of substances they use compounded with mental health. That’s one area.”
Serl says the funds still have to be approved as part of the 2020 budget and the hope is to have a consultant in place as soon as possible come the new year. “One thing that’s really great about this timing is we’re working on three concurrent initiatives that will help inform the social plan. So we have the child care inventory and action plan that will be completed around March of next year. That will help inform the plan. Next year around that same time, March and April, we will be doing our next homelessness count.” Serl says it will also be starting its housing needs report and all of these reports will help inform the direction of the new social plan.
Selre says there will be ample opportunity for members of the public to have their say on this new social plan and she expects top hear a lot of feedback both positive and negative as the process moves along.