Community Engagement

A group of participants, volunteers and staff head out to talk to our neighbours

Every year West Neighbourhood House reaches out to the broader community to get feedback on a wide range of issues. Teams of staff, volunteers and participants knock on doors in the neighbourhood, visit businesses, attend festivals, and talk with people at main intersections. We call this our “Community Sweep”. The conversations will change year to year but include topics like:

• Are there current needs and support that they or someone they know would benefit from?
• What are emerging needs and issues?
• What are people worried about and excited about?
• What do people know and think about West Neighbourhood House?
• What do they think about….. ( a topic issue)?
• What are skills, interests and contributions they would like to make to the community?

West Neighbourhood House also has conversations with volunteers and participants in our various programs on issues that affect the whole community. We call this our “Program Sweep” Each program also has discussions with their participants on all aspects of the design, delivery and new developments of the program.

Input from the community, volunteers and program participants are used to inform an annual staff and board planning exercise from which strategic plans and priorities are established for the organization.