Toronto City Council Expands SafeTO Plan to Deepen Focus on Prevention and Public Health

May 22, 2025 News Room 0 Comments 2 min read

Toronto City Council has approved a major expansion of SafeTO, the city’s 10-year Community Safety and Well-Being Plan, by endorsing the 2025–2027 implementation phase and reinforcing its long-term commitment to a public health approach to community safety.

SafeTO represents a fundamental shift from reactive emergency response to proactive prevention, placing equity, mental health, and social well-being at the forefront of public safety in Toronto.

“This is about addressing root causes of harm in our communities and building safer neighbourhoods through compassion, coordination, and care,” said City officials.

🔍 What’s New in Phase 2 (2025–2027)

The newly endorsed Phase 2 plan outlines key enhancements across several areas:

Toronto Community Crisis Service (TCCS) will expand its collaboration with the TTC, aiming to respond to mental health-related calls on subway tracks, a service it currently does not provide.
A comprehensive response to gender-based and intimate partner violence will be advanced in collaboration with community agencies, the City, and Toronto Police.
Continued work with Indigenous community leaders to develop a local implementation plan in response to the Calls for Justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.

Additionally, Council directed staff to:

Review youth employment strategies
Explore community-led Neighbourhood Watch programs

📊 SafeTO Dashboard & Community Tools

The 2025 update includes the launch of a community safety and well-being dashboard, a community report, and program videos that help track the progress and impact of SafeTO initiatives. These resources are now available online at: toronto.ca/SafeTO

✅ Progress So Far

Since the plan’s launch in 2021:

Over 90% of the 26 priority actions are completed or underway
The Toronto Community Crisis Service (TCCS) has responded to 25,000+ mental health crisis calls, resolving 78% without police involvement
The Community Crisis Response Program now operates seven days a week
A new Violence Prevention Toronto Office has been created to coordinate strategies citywide