The Community Services Branch is home to a collection of a units focused on a variety of mandates. The common theme between each of these units is that they achieve their goals through strategic community partnerships. Community Services includes the School Resource, Community Inclusion Team, Community Oriented Response & Engagement Units.
COMMUNITY INCLUSION TEAM
The CIT Unit is a unique collection of Community Service officers guided by the principles envisioned by the Service’s Organizational Change committee. Through engagement within the Thunder Bay Police Service, and within the greater community, CIT strives to build positive relationships between police, Indigenous people, other racialized and underrepresented groups they serve.
Learn more about the CIT's unique mandate and strategic plan here.
SCHOOL RESOURCES
The Thunder Bay Police Service’s School Resource Officers have a special relationship with the city’s schools and school boards. They are often called upon to provide students and school staff with educational presentations, or conduct safety drills.
While Platoon Patrol Unit officers may still be called upon for enforcement during emergency calls, most investigations or enforcement issues that occur within the city’s schools will be handled by a dedicated School Resource officer.
IMPACT
The Thunder Bay Police Service responds to an extraordinary number of calls for service relating to mental health issues. As a response, the IMPACT Unit was formed to provide people in need with a more appropriate response.
Through a partnership with the Canadian Mental Health Association, a trained Platoon Patrol officer is partnered with a crisis worker. These teams are able to provide a more robust and focused response than having police dispatched exclusively.
COMMUNITY ORIENTED RESPONSE & ENGAGEMENT
Commonly referred to as the CORE Unit, these officers are part of a high-visibility unit that identifies specific issues and problem areas of the city and executes projects focused on addressing the root problems. Recently, CORE officers have been engaged in numerous partnerships that have helped them identify and disrupt incidents of ongoing home takeovers across the city.