Building Trust

Community Centric Policing

Community centric policing is at the core of developing relationships with our community and connects the frontlines of policing with our citizens. It is built through relationships and stronger connections to the communities we serve. Through interactions and data and analytics, we can better use resources and ensure that we have the right people in the right place at the right time to deliver the best outcomes for our communities.

Community Engagement

DRPS hosted various community engagement events through-out the year and across the region in an effort to build trust and engage with the community. Some of these include:

Citizen’s Academy / Older Adults Academy

These two initiatives provide residents with an opportunity to go behind the scenes of DRPS. They were developed with the goal of familiarizing members of the public with some police practices. The Academy is a volunteer community-police engagement opportunity.

The Monday Night Project

This initiative was started in spring of 2023 by an officer in the DRPS Human Trafficking Unit. This program aims to provide a safe space for marginalized women in Oshawa, many of them victims of human trafficking. This program has made a profound impact, touching the lives of previously invisible and vulnerable women by offering them a safe place to develop friendships, have fun and connect to counselling, harm reduction, housing supports, legal information and basic needs.

CopShop

This year DRPS members joined forces with the Pickering Town Centre for the 18th annual Cop Shop. Nearly 50 kids were partnered with an officer for a pizza lunch and received gift cards to find the perfect holiday presents. This year also saw the first Shop with a Cop event at the Oshawa Centre where 21 kids were able to participate. The children chosen for Cop Shop are selected from recommendations based on need, recognition of specific academic or sports achievement or because of volunteer efforts that are making a difference in the community.

DRPS Food and Toy Drive

The Annual DRPS Food and Toy Drive completed its 35th consecutive year collecting donations from various individuals, organizations and businesses across Durham Region. The annual drive is one of the largest consecutive running emergency service-led drives in Ontario.

Survey for New Strategic Plan

Through-out 2023 DRPS’ new Strategic Plan was in development. This plan saw extensive engagement with the community and DRPS members. An online external community survey was conducted and saw nearly 4,000 responses from residents. Stakeholder consultations with more than 50 service providers were also conducted to make sure the voice of community agencies were also included. A Town Hall meeting was hosted in partnership with the DRPS Diversity Advisory Committee to capture the voices of our community. Results and insights gained from these initiatives help drive future planning and priorities of the service. This includes the development of the 2024 Strategic Plan. View the 2020-2022 strategic plan.

Diversity Advisory Committee (DAC) / Youth Advisory Committee (YAC)

DAC continued to support the DRPS in recognizing and responding to rapid social change in the external environment that creates challenges that could affect the internal police organization and the ability of the Service to respond equitably and fairly. Similarly, the Youth Advisory Committee, established in 2021, continued to provide a community lens on issues which intersect youth and policing to enhance the relationships between the Service and diverse communities.

Youth in Policing

Youth in Policing (YIP) continues to expand since its inception in 2006, making a positive difference in the lives of Durham Region youth. View the YIP 2023 Winter report.

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