The Belleville Police Service would like to inform of a change to our Community Liaison Office. As part of our ongoing commitment to providing support to the most vulnerable in our community, the Belleville Police have enhanced the roles and responsibilities of our previously named Liaison Officers. The change includes renaming the positions to “Community Support Officers” and refocused duties to serve those individuals experiencing addiction, mental health, and homelessness issues.
These Community Support Officers are also involved in community engagement initiatives, including; educational presentations on a variety of topics as well as providing specific support to other “communities within the community”.
The current Community Support Officers are Constable Brittney Blake, Constable Nick Gervais and Sergeant Mike Doucette. (for bios and other pictures, please see social media links below).
Our Community Support Officers work closely with “Welcoming Streets,” an outreach program currently funded by Hastings County and facilitated by the Belleville Downtown District BIA. The program is designed to assist downtown businesses and vulnerable community members simultaneously through its empathetic approach, centred around establishing and maintaining trusting relationships. Sara Behring is the current outreach worker who supports the downtown community and works closely with the Community Support Officers. This is an example of a very successful partnership with police that showcases a collaborative approach.
Another excellent example of a thriving local partnership that showcases the Belleville Police Service’s commitment to mental health issues in the community is IMPACT (Integrated Mobile Police and Co-Response Team). This group is funded by the Canadian Mental Health Association and provides social workers who work closely with police to better respond to individuals experiencing a mental health crisis.
The Belleville Police Service strives to consistently build bridges with community partners to serve our community better. Our Community Support Officers, in particular, look forward to engaging in this vital work.
