Some new youth hubs are coming to Manitoba to help young people with mental health and addiction issues.
The province is adding a total of five new hubs in Winnipeg, Brandon and Selkirk.
Mental Health, Wellness and Recovery Minister Audrey Gordon told 680 CJOB the hubs are tailored for the areas they’re located in, and local community groups will be very involved.
“Some of these organizations already exist,” Gordon said.
“For example, in the Point Douglas neighbourhood, the youth hub will be Indigenous-led, and serving the Centennial and Point Douglas and Centennial areas, and it will be led by Ka Ni Kanichihk in Winnipeg.”
The other Winnipeg hubs will be downtown and in St. Boniface.
“Navigating the system to find the right services, especially when it comes to mental health and addictions, can be daunting for youth,” said Gordon.
“Each of these youth hubs will bring together mental health care, addiction services, primary care, peer support and other social services together in one youth-friendly site.”
The hubs are intended to provide easy access to one-stop integrated services for young people and their families, and their locations — chosen to serve youth in the most high-need areas — were selected in response to a call for proposals last November.
“The strength of the youth hub model is how partners work together in a different way to ensure that services are truly integrated, youth-driven and accessible,” said Dwayne Dyck of the Brandon Youth Hub partnership.
Funding for the project comes from the province — to the tune of almost $2 million — as well as a philanthropic network including the United Way Winnipeg, Bell-Graham Boeckh Foundation Partnership, RBC Foundation, The Winnipeg Foundation, the Moffat Family Fund, and the Réseau Compassion Network, among others.
Those groups will chip in a total of just under $3 million over a three-year period.