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About Us

Who We Are


At St. Leonard’s Place Peel (SLPP) we understand that situations of mental illness, addiction, or conflict with the law can be difficult to overcome. We also acknowledge that, with the right supports and a strong personal commitment to change, a brighter future is possible.

For more than 45 years, St. Leonard’s Place Peel has offered a space of healing and reintegration for men 18 years and older. Our transitional housing program and wraparound supports provide men dedicated to their recovery journey with an opportunity of a fresh start.

SLPP’s model of care is strengths-based and person-centered. Every client is engaged as a partner in a plan of care that is customized to the needs of the individual seeking support. Each client is supported by a multidisciplinary team of staff with expertise across a broad range of professional backgrounds – including social work, nursing, personal support work, nutrition counselling, psychiatry, criminal justice, and recreational therapy.

 

Leadership Team


Leslie Barnes – Chief Executive Officer

Christina Sinnott – Director of Operations

Melissa McDermott – Director of Finance

Jeremy Rodrigues – Operations Supervisor

Careen Barrett – Operations Supervisor

Mark Headley – Operations Supervisor

Jaleesa Brown – Operations Supervisor

Hussein Mossajee – Operations Supervisor

Kenneth Alcampado – Operations Supervisor

Dennis Monk – Facilities Supervisor

Mission, Vision, and Values


Who we are and what we do.

St. Leonard’s Place Peel provides community-based residential support for men over 16 years of age who have significant mental health and substance abuse problems, as well as those who have had involvement with the justice system.

We have developed and implemented a unique approach to respond to the full range and intensity of needs of our residents who are often not served by our community health and aftercare agencies, and who have challenges accessing community-based, or supported housing.

We are committed to building a safer and healthier community by remaining a transparent and active neighbour in the Region of Peel. SLPP believes every member of our community has value and purpose in life and, with the appropriate support, can make a contribution.

Vision

We will be an innovative leader committed to building safe and healthier communities of inclusion that care for and value each and every individual.

Mission

St. Leonard’s Place Peel is dedicated to supporting our clients, building their capacity and enabling the developments of key life skills through evidence-informed holistic programs and services that optimize quality of life.

Values

CLIENT-CENTRED

We believe in the resiliency of our clients, their voice, their right to human dignity and care that is integrated, coordinated and accessible.

EXCELLENCE

We are committed to excellence in all aspects of our work through evidence- informed practice and an unwavering commitment to our mission.

COLLABORATIVE

We take pride in working cooperatively with a broad range of community partners towards the goal of creating a healthy and safe community.

INNOVATIVE

We strive to meet the ever-evolving needs of our clients though new and innovative approaches to client-centered care.

ACCOUNTABLE

We take seriously our obligation to provide the highest quality of care to our clients, and will be transparent in all areas of work, performance, outcomes and deliverables.

Philosophy of Care


Our counselling services and programs are designed to enhance the client experience through capacity building frameworks that are practical, responsive, and evidence-based.

We utilize supportive counselling and clinical modalities within a multidisciplinary team environment to create an environment that is client-centered, holistic, and integrative in its approach.

As partners in care, we believe our role is to guide the recovery and reintegration process, and client’s role is to own and drive that process forward.

Our Evidence-Based Approach

For over 40 years, St. Leonard’s Place Peel (SLPP) has offered supportive housing with intensive case management, and an integrated set of services and supports that treat individuals and their needs as unique and their lives as holistic. In other words, SLPP’s community and staff have long since recognized that for individuals to be healthy, resilient and their lives to be fulfilling and whole, they need to experience and engage in a variety of interactions and activities and achieve a life balance. This is why our intensive and integrated case-management approach includes a variety of needs and asset assessments, as well as a multitude of programming and supports, from psychiatric counseling to life skills, to group outings, employment opportunities, recreational activities, and much more.

Supportive Housing

SLPP combines housing and many services in one location (i.e., a one-stop shop), which is a cost-effective model for providing intensive support for helping people live more stable and productive lives. It has been shown, through cost-benefit analysis, that the supportive housing model is preferable to other approaches that encourage the homeless population to cycle through emergency shelters, hospitals, detention facilities, rehab centres and the streets. The positive social, economic and community impacts of this housing approach have been studied and documented numerous times.

History


The Beginning of St. Leonard’s Place Peel

“I am not my brother’s keeper. I am my brother’s brother.”

– Sir Robert Williams, K.S.S., C.M., O.M.C.

Sir Robert Williams was instrumental in establishing St. Leonard’s House in Windsor in 1962. Two years later, Sir Robert moved his family to Bramalea where he soon became involved with the St. Vincent de Paul Society delivering Christmas packages to men at the Brampton foundry. That altruistic nature would lead him to open his home to inmates who had nowhere else to go.

A Board of Directors was formed that comprised like-minded, motivated and dedicated members of the community. Two-and-a-half acres of land were donated by Bramalea Limited, and on June 21, 1971, Sir Robert Williams’s dream became a reality when St. Leonard’s Place Peel (SLPP) opened its doors to 21 men.

Growth

Over the years, SLPP steadily grew from its modest beginnings. An expansion to the residence allowed for more rooms in 1987 and a major new addition in 2000 almost doubled the agency’s capacity. This was also when SLPP expanded its mission, from only serving federal parolees, to providing services to those facing vulnerability to homelessness and mental illness.

Another major expansion in 2007 gave another 24 rooms and an expanded, professional kitchen to serve the growing population. Two new floors were added to a residence in 2012, bringing an additional 21 beds to the agency.

St. Leonard’s Place Peel, Today

SLPP has grown from a modest 21-bed halfway house to a major transitional housing provider in the region with a 117-bed capacity and a multi-disciplinary care team. The first four decades of SLPP saw the agency grow in its commitment to providing men with the tools they need for a brighter future – and it is this consistent commitment to excellence that will continue the growth and development of St. Leonard’s Place Peel as we look forward to the next decades in front of us.

Annual Reports and Financial Statements


At SLPP, we are committed to transparency and accountability. We take pride in responsibly managing every dollar we receive. Our most recent and past financial statements indicate where all of our funds come from and how they’re used.

 

 

St. Leonard`s Place Peel is a Registered Charity and is regulated under the Canadian Income Tax Act through the Charities Directorate of the Canada Revenue Agency.

Our Charitable Registration Number is: 119185098RR0001

If you would like to see our Registered Charity Information Return, please click:

Board of Directors – April 1 , 2023 to March 31, 2024


Board Chair

Sylvia Kucinska De Ocampo

Vice Chair

Rizwan Hassan

Treasurer

Owen Lobo

Secretary

Shane Guadeloupe

Directors

Christy Upshall

Cynthia Okwudili

Andreas Spence

Jennifer Graham

Lisa Yetming

Strategic Plan


 

Strategic Directions 2019-2023

In 2019, St. Leonard’s Place Peel (SLPP) initiated a Strategic Planning exercise to identify which opportunities would best support our vision for the future.

Through funding provided by the Peel Leadership Centre, SLPP hired a consultant who supported the agency in the following strategic planning activities:

  • Information gathering through literature review, as well as interviews and focus groups with management, staff and the board of directors
  • Funders, service providers and other leaders in the community were interviewed, and two town hall meetings were held with program delivery staff
  • A planning retreat was then held in May 2019 that engaged senior staff and board members in discussions about the future of SLPP
  • Further work was done in June and July to refine the strategic directions and to identify related objectives and implementation targets

A Summary of the Strategic Plan can be viewed here.

St. Leonard’s Place Peel Privacy Policy

St. Leonard’s Place Peel is committed to complying with all applicable privacy legislation.

We collect Personal Information from our donors and website visitors (“Donor Personal Information”), with their consent, for the purposes of determining website efficacy, fund raising and issuing charitable receipts.

We are committed to maintaining the confidentiality of Donor Personal Information. We do not lend, exchange, rent or sell Donor Personal Information to third parties.

All personal data provided to us on our website is secure information. We gather information about visits to our website for statistical analysis and improving our website content. We adopt various electronic and management processes to prevent unauthorized access and ensure proper use of information provided to us online.

Any access requests or concerns regarding the handling of Donor Personal Information, compliance with this Policy or for a copy of our Comprehensive Privacy Policy, please contact our CEO in writing.

If you supply your email address or telephone number, you may receive fundraising and information emails and telephone calls from us. Please contact us at (905) 457-3611, if you wish to be removed from our email list or telemarketing list.

COMPLAINTS POLICY

SLPP is committed to providing excellent service. We recognize that, from time to time, there may be concerns or complaints and we are committed to:
• Addressing complaints in a timely, fair, respectful and accountable manner;
• Providing an opportunity to explain the problem, prompt action and ongoing follow up until the issue is resolved;
• Making this process accessible and open.

This policy sets out the process for addressing concerns and complaints which stakeholders, including donors, funders, supporters and the public, may have with SLPP. A complaint may be about our services, programs, fundraising, donor relations, volunteer relations or communications.

Procedures: How to Make a Complaint

1. If you have a complaint or concern, you are encouraged to talk with the staff person or board member at SLPP who is most connected to the concern/situation. The relevant person can be found through the SLPP website, by emailing info@slpp.ca or by calling the SLPP office. Your concern will be directed to the person most able to assist you with the process of making and addressing a complaint.

2. This relevant person will document your concern and include your name and contact information, the date, a description of the complaint, what you are requesting in order to resolve the complaint and the final resolution or decision. It is hoped that through this conversation, your concern will be addressed to your satisfaction. You will be kept informed if there are more steps involved in addressing your concern.

3. If your complaint is not resolved, or if you are uncomfortable discussing the issue with the relevant person, you can inform the supervisor of the person about the complaint. In most cases this would be the Director of Operations, the Director of Healthcare Service or the Supervisor of Operations. Where a complaint is related to the CEO, the stakeholder may direct the complaint to the Board Chair, who will work to resolve the complaint.

4. If the Director of Operations, Director of Healthcare Service or the Supervisor of Operations are not able to resolve the complaint to the satisfaction of all parties, your concern will be referred to the CEO. You will be kept informed at each step.

5. The CEO may choose to bring the complaint forward to the Board of Directors for review and advice. The CEO will then determine what the appropriate action or recommendations are and will inform you in writing of this information. It is the responsibility of SLPP staff to implement the recommendations.

 

Guidelines for Implementation

1. Confidentiality will be respected at all times. There will be no repercussions to someone bringing forward a complaint in good faith.

2. The initial response to a complaint should occur as soon as possible and not longer than one week from receiving the complaint. Every effort will be made to review and respond to a complaint within 30 days.

3. Documentation about the complaint will be kept in a file separate from any other file related to the stakeholder.

4. It is the responsibility of all staff to have a working knowledge of the complaint resolution process and to co-operate with the processing of complaints.

5. It is the responsibility of the Directors and Supervisors to track and respond to any trends identified through the complaint resolution process.

6. It is the responsibility of the CEO to report to the Board annually on the number, type and disposition of the complaints received.

Partners

 

 

 

 

 

The Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) is an agency of the Government of Ontario, and one of Canada’s leading granting foundations. OTF awarded $108 million to 629 projects last year to build healthy and vibrant communities in Ontario.

 

Slaight Family Foundation Seniors Initiative

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

St. Leonard’s Place Peel is supported by the Government of Canada’s Emergency Community Support Fund and the Brampton and Caledon Community Foundation.

Accessibility at St. Leonard’s Place Peel

Our Commitment

St. Leonard’s Place Peel (SLPP) provides community-based residential support for men over 18 years of age that have significant mental health and substance use problems, and judicial system involvement.

 

At SLPP, we are committed to building a safer and healthier community by remaining a transparent and active neighbour in the Region of Peel. We believe that every member of our community has value and purpose in life and with the appropriate support, can make a contribution. Thus, at SLPP, we recognize the history of discrimination against persons with disabilities in Ontario and have created and adopted policies and procedures that are consistent with Ontario Regulation 429/07 under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005. Also, our policies and procedures reflect the core principles of independence, dignity, integration, and equal opportunity for all individuals.

 

St. Leonard’s Place Peel Accessibility Policy

This policy is intended to meet the requirements of Accessibility Standards for Customer Service, Ontario Regulation 429/07 under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, and applies to the provision of goods and services to the public or other third parties, not to the goods themselves.

All goods and services provided by St. Leonard’s Place Peel shall follow the principles of dignity, independence, integration and equal opportunity.

St. Leonard’s Place Peel Accessibility Policy

St. Leonard’s Place Peel Customer Service Policy

 

Multi-Year Accessibility Plan

The Accessibility of Ontarians with Disabilities The Accessibility of Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, requires organizations to create multi-year accessibility plans, update them at least once every five years and post them on their websites.

Multi-Year Accessibility Plan

 

We appreciate your feedback!

St. Leonard’s Place Peel is committed to meeting accessibility requirements and continuously taking steps to improve its services and website to comply with the AODA and its regulations.  We will continue to identify and reduce barriers which prevent access to our goods, services, websites and content.

To help us do this, we welcome your comments and suggestions. Please contact us with any questions, feedback or concerns related to accessibility at info@slpp.ca or by filling out the form below.

AODA Feedback
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St. Leonard’s Place Peel (SLPP) understands the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak on all residents, staff and the larger community. We are closely monitoring this situation and have developed a disease prevention control strategy that includes education and risk mitigation protocols to reduce the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) within our facility.

 

COVID-19, A COMMUNITY RESPONSE.

As the gravity of COVID-19 continues to settle in around the world, we are all having to take what feels like drastic measures to keep ourselves, families and community safe.  St. Leonard’s Place Peel (SLPP) has taken this call to action very seriously since February 2020. At that time we created a COVID-19 infection control strategy. Click here to access our strategy.  The strategy is led by our medical team comprised of a resident Nurse Practitioner and three healthcare professionals who have been instrumental in guiding the implementation of the strategy across the organization.   Additionally, we thank all our frontline workers, program and administrative staff who work hard each day to execute these best practice guidelines of which have helped to secure the health and safety of SLPP’s internal community.

During these uncertain times, we are thankful to our funders and partners for their invaluable support and consultation.  Corrections Services Canada, The Region of Peel and United Way – you have been exemplary in your support of our infectious disease control plan and overall care of our community.

To our residents who have had their lives changed as a result of Ontario’s State of Emergency declaration – please know that your health and safety remains a top priority for us.

Once again, for more information about our strategy – please click this link.

 

COVID Strategy

SLPP COVID -19 Immunization Policy

Antigen Testing Policy

Partners

United Way Greater Toronto Area

It's How We Care

We're a non-profit organization. Every bit of support that we receive is greatly appreciated and goes towards funding programs and services we provide to our clients.