WE LIP Success Story – SEPTEMBER 2018

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SHARING BEST PRACTICES – SPICE PRESENTATION

September 17, 2018

 

WE LIP was honoured to have been asked to once again deliver the SPICE Up Your Service Delivery presentation. The information was presented on September 17, 2018 via Skype to attendees of the Ontario Municipal Social Services Association (OMSSA) Employment and Income Social Assistance Network (EIIN) meeting. The panel of representatives from the Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership SPICE (Settlement Partners Information Communication Exchange) Committee and the City of Windsor included:

  • Mary Ellen Bernard, Manager of Social Policy and Planning / Project Manager

City of Windsor / Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership

  • Janet Gerace, Supervisor, Ontario Works, City of Windsor
  • Jennifer DeMaeyer, Orientation Specialist, Multicultural Council of Windsor and Essex County
  • Marina George, Communication Assistant, Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership

The sharing of best practises focused on the successful outcomes of the SPICE committee and how a municipality can work collaboratively with settlement organizations to deliver services to immigrants and refugees. Following the presentation, Mary Ellen Bernard was invited to speak about the SPICE Committee at the upcoming 2018 OMSSA Zone 1 Fall Conference being held on October 10, 2018 in Chatham.

Immigration Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) tasked the Windsor Essex Local Immigration partnership (WE LIP) and the Chatham-Kent Local Immigration Partnership (CK LIP) with jointly organizing and co-hosting two community planning events for the Windsor Essex and Chatham-Kent communities related to services for newcomers.

IRCC Planning Day

September 25, 2018

This full day session was attended by 48 staff from Windsor-Essex and Chatham-Kent IRCC funded organizations. Participants were engaged in a facilitated session focusing on identifying IRCC-funded programming gaps, issues and opportunities. They were then asked to prioritize their ideas based on the following criteria:

  • Addresses a clear need in the community that is evidence-based
  • Improves the individual’s health and safety
  • Aligns with IRCC vision of integration
  • Innovative or new way of thinking
  • Enables a more flexible approach to problem solving
  • Promotes collaboration among non-traditional partners
  • Promotes or advances people along a citizenship path
  • Can make systemic changes in the community
  • Engages the client in the process
  • Supports group that needs service but are not currently IRCC funded

 

IRCC Community Consultation

September 26, 2018

The half day session, which will be used to inform Call for Proposal 2019, included 49 attendees representing IRCC funded agencies, community organizations, employers and newcomer clients. The purpose of the event was to strengthen networks and develop connections to address gaps in the community related to newcomers. CORE principles were used to guide the discussion meant to elicit ideas leading to new types of partnerships, leveraging of shared resources and other innovative new approaches that can assist in finding efficiencies through the sharing of scarce resources.

CORE Vision Statement: Successful settlement and integration benefits newcomers and Canada by building a more inclusive, culturally diverse and productive nation. This is achieved through a shared effort that connects Canadians and newcomers, and helps both reach their economic and social potential.

 


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