WEYBURN – The pieces are moving into place for the new Weyburn Family Resource Centre, the joint program between the Family Place and the Holy Family Roman Catholic Separate School Division, the board of trustees were told at the June meeting for Holy Family on Wednesday.
The school division has received the initial startup funding of $215,000 from the province for the new resource centre, which will be located in the Family Place’s new home in the former Dance Zone building on McLelland Street, just off Fifth Avenue North, said Terry Jordens, superintendent of student services and assessments for Holy Family, in an update on the resource centre first announced in April.
“We’ve passed on what we received to the Family Place, so they can go ahead with the renovations, such as a new office space, play rooms and teachers room, plus to cover administrative fees for Holy Family and the Family Place,” said Jordens, adding this will also help buy resources for the new centre.
The joint partners are to hand in the implementation budget for the new centre by the end of June, said Jordens, along with the signing of agreements with the Family Place.
The staff of the Family Place spent a day at the Holy Family office going over best practices, she added. “We got a lot of great ideas, and it was good to hear stories of what others have been through,” she said. There are currently 12 other resource centres in the province, and the new one established in Estevan was able to provide some input and ideas as well.
“It’s been good to have the Family Place people here with us, learning together,” added education director Gwen Keith. “There’s lots of experiences around the province to help us.”
A meeting was set for June 14 with other community stakeholders as well, noted Jordens, including the City of Weyburn, Southeast Cornerstone and Envision Counselling, Mental Health and Addictions, among others.
“The plan is for a soft opening this fall, and a big grand opening will be held by April of next spring,” she added.
“It adds to our system with what we’re able to do,” commented board chair Bruno Tuchscherer.
This community centre will focus on all families with young children to provide free, flexible programming that builds relationships between caregivers and children. The four pillars of Early Years Family Resources Centres are early learning, parenting education, family wellness and support, and information and referrals.
