Enhancing access to social and health services in Peterborough County

Peterborough, ON – Peterborough County Hubs Program launched on Monday, April 3, 2023 with nine locations throughout Peterborough County to improve access to social and health services in rural communities, through a partnership between Peterborough County, Townships, the City of Peterborough, and partner agencies.

One of the common challenges facing many rural residents in Peterborough County is convenient access to social and health services, which are primarily in the City of Peterborough, locally. Living in the County without easy access to a vehicle or transit can make it challenging and expensive to travel into the City for appointments and services.

To help improve access to social and health services in rural communities, Hubs have been established across Peterborough County that provide free office and meeting space for agencies who deliver services in the County. The goal of these Hubs is to improve the ability for agencies to deliver services with people and families living in rural and remote locations. Agency staff can meet with clients in a private office and reduce their burden to find transportation into the City.

"The Peterborough County Hubs program is an essential step towards the equitable delivery of social services for our rural residents. Congratulations to Peterborough Social Services, our nine hub host locations, and all partner agencies for your collaboration to improve access in our communities." said Peterborough County Warden Bonnie Clark.

The Hub locations are:

• Apsley, at the Community Care office, 126 Burleigh Street
• Douro, at the Douro Public Library, 435 Douro 4^th Line
• Keene, at the Otonabee-South Monaghan Township Office, 20 Third Street
• Havelock, at the Community Care office, 17 Smith Drive
• Lakefield, at the Agilec office, 14 Queen Street
• Millbrook, at the Old Millbrook School,1 Dufferin Street
• Norwood, at the Asphodel-Norwood Township office, 2357 County Road 45
• Norwood, at the Norwood Public Library, 2363 County Road 45
• Warsaw, at the Douro-Dummer Township office, 894 South Street

Access to services at the hubs is by-appointment. Details on the services available at each hub and on how to access the services are posted at peterborough.ca/hubs.

“I believe that by working together on the Community Safety and Well-Being Plan as a group, Havelock-Belmont-Methuen will better serve people in our area in so many ways.  When it comes to Housing, Homelessness, Transportation and Connectivity issues, it can be a real problem for our rural areas to access programs. By offering some of the programs locally in HBM, one aspect it will eliminate is the transportation barriers that many experienced by having to commute to the City,” said Havelock-Belmont-Methuen Mayor Jim Martin.

Some rural residents may not have access to high-speed internet, reliable cell service, or technology to have virtual meetings with agencies located in the City. To help remove this barrier, some of the Hubs are equipped with a laptop so virtual meetings can be arranged between an agency and their rural client.

“Agencies located in the City have often struggled to provide convenient service to rural residents. The Peterborough County Hubs Program creates an opportunity for people living in the County to meet with service providers in their home communities. We are excited to partner with the County, Townships, and service agencies on this program.” said City Councillor Matthew Crowley, Chair of Social Services.

“Community Care Peterborough is thrilled to be part of this initiative.  We already have a very strong presence throughout the county and are pleased to see local residents in our rural communities having access to a range of health and social services.” Said Danielle Belair, Executive Director with Community Care Peterborough.

The Hub program is a collaboration between the City, County, Townships, Community Care Peterborough, and Agilec. It is a strategy identified in the Community Safety and Well-being Plan recently adopted by the City and County of Peterborough to connect people with programs and services that meet their basic needs.

“Improving access to services in the County is a high priority. The Peterborough County Hubs Program removes many obstacles to allow better connections between rural residents and services normally only accessible within the City.” said Chris Kawalec, Community Development Program Manager with the City of Peterborough.

Visit www.peterborough.ca/hubs to find out more about the Peterborough County Hubs Program.