Town Hall report highlights findings from Eastern Region

Town hall forums held last fall in the Eastern Region of the Strategic Social Plan brought people from different communities together to share and discuss their common issues.

Their recommendations are highlighted in The Baird Town Halls Report on the Eastern SSP Region, released today by the Eastern Region Steering Committee.

The sessions were held so that the committee could share its priorities, validate directions, identify gaps in services that could foster individual/community development and identify new partnerships.

"Bringing people in communities together to identify issues and priorities is certainly an important theme in the Strategic Social Plan," said Gerald Smith, Minister of Health and Community Services and lead minister for the SSP. "We know that working together is the best way to address our most challenging social problems and find creative solutions."

The loss of community volunteers, a need for better career counseling in schools and a call for better strategies to address recruitment and retention of professionals were some of the issues raised by citizens.

"People told us that this was the first time for many of them to come together in a common forum to share their concerns and ideas," said Fay Matthews, chair of the Eastern Region Steering Committee. "They are now looking for other ways to work together, and I think this commitment is as important as the issues they raised. The SSP is all about partnerships and looking for effective ways of working together."

The Baird Town Halls Report has four sections: background information on each local area, issues identified by participants, summary of recommendations and a review of the SSP regional plan.

"We want to keep people informed and involved in this work," said Ms. Matthews. "We want to take their concerns and move forward, and continue the dialogue with communities."

The Eastern Region Steering Committee is one of six SSP committees in Newfoundland and Labrador that works to implement the plan across the province.

For more information about the town hall report, contact regional planner Colin Holloway at (709) 466-4031, or look on the web at www.gov.nl.ca/ssp/

Media contact: Marcia Porter, Communications, (709) 729-0175.

2003 02 28                                         10:45 a.m.