Surrey Council makes SAFE Program core City programming
The City of Surrey announced today that Council is moving the award-winning Surrey Anti-Gang Family Empowerment Program (SAFE) program into core City programming, after the five-year funding from Public Safety Canada concludes at the end of this month.
Surrey, BC - The City of Surrey announced today that Council is moving the award-winning Surrey Anti-Gang Family Empowerment Program (SAFE) program into core City programming, after the five-year funding from Public Safety Canada concludes at the end of this month. SAFE’s multi-agency collaborative model emerged as a first-of-its-kind approach to preventing and addressing youth gang involvement. It is made up of 10 organizations that deliver 11 individual programs to support children, youth and families in Surrey.
“The SAFE Program has not only met but exceeded expectations and is on track to support 5,000 Surrey residents by the end of this year,” said Mayor Brenda Locke. “This would not have been possible without the dedication and tireless work of our partners, which is why we celebrate them and their outstanding commitment today. With SAFE now being part of the City’s core programming we can continue to provide supports and services that help build strong, diverse, safe, resilient kids and families in Surrey.”
“It is important that the City identify and support programs that are effective,” said Councillor Rob Stutt. “SAFE not only works but has been regarded as the gold standard when it comes to strengthening youth resiliency. Our $1.5M investment in this program is an investment in the future of our children and their families.”
Earlier this year, the federal government invested nearly $4M to launch the Surrey Youth Resiliency Program, an initiative similar to SAFE. This program is anticipated to support 2,000 more youth and families over the next three years. Empower Surrey, developed in 2021, has helped parents learn ways to recognize and address warning signs for gang involvement. To date, there have been roughly 30,000 visits to the website and more than 850 parents supported through interactive Empower Surrey Parent Workshops which have generated numerous referrals to SAFE programming.
In 2019, the federal government provided the City with $7.5 million to help address gang activity in Surrey. The funding came after the 2018 Mayor’s Task Force on Gang Violence Prevention released a list of recommendations that resulted in the development of programming that supports young people to avoid criminal exploitation.
Learn more about the SAFE Program at surrey.ca/safe.