West Neighbourhood House has been working to support the community in Toronto’s west end for more than 100 years. Now it’s time to look to the future and think about how we can prepare for the challenges our community will face.
We need your help!
Yes, I want to help shape the future of the House and the neighbourhood!
To make long-term plans that will help us prepare for an uncertain future, we need to start by listening to our community. To do that, we’re taking on the Community Check In Project. It will use the experiences and insights of members of the community to build the House’s long-term vision, strategy, and services.
We are gathering feedback from:
- A small working group of West Neighbourhood House staff;
- 80 interviews with volunteers, participants, clients, and members of the broader community; and
- A community reference panel of randomly selected volunteers from the community.
The community interviews
The purpose of the community interviews is to understand the lived experience of our neighbours in the current context of Covid-19 and to ask people about how West Neighbourhood House should adapt to long-term changes in the neighbourhood. These interviews will inform the programming of the panel and ensure that its work is rooted in an understanding of what our community is experiencing now and anticipating in the future. These brief interviews will be conducted with approximately 80 clients, participants, volunteers, and other members of the community.
The community reference panel
A reference panel, sometimes called a citizen jury or citizen assembly, is a democratic form of public engagement that creates a well-supported opportunity for representative members of the public to participate in an important public decision or planning process. The Community Reference Panel at West Neigbourhood House will consist of 28 demographically representative, randomly selected volunteers representing the community the House serves. The members of the panel will learn about the present and future challenges facing our community, as well as different ways these challenges might be met. Together, the panel will discuss what they have learned, deliberate on options to better serve the community, and recommend actions.
If you have any questions or want to know how to get involved, please email info@westnh-checkin.ca or call 1-866-508-1435.