Outside Programs:

Community Outreach

Community Outreach serves residents from Strathcona County. It was primarily designed for people who do not need to access our residential services. Community Outreach serves individuals who are seeking information for themselves but also for a family member, coworker, or friend who is affected by family violence.

The program provides:

• Direct emotional and practical support.
• Valuable information about the cycle of abuse, its effects on women and children, and how to live free of abuse and violence.
• Assistance in making links with appropriate community resources.
• Information on services for newcomers to Canada.
• Information on protective orders, restraining orders, and more as well as makes legal referrals.
• One on one safety planning.

Telephone: : (780) 416 - 7043

Tri-Shelter Outreach

Outreach is a three month program that provides emotional and practical support to women and families once they depart from our shelter. This service is offered to women who decide to live independently or who plan on returning to their partners.

The program offers:

• Information about abuse and its effects.
• Safety plans, as well as information about protective orders, legal referrals, and also provides direct court support.
• Valuable emotional support.
• Advocacy with a variety of agencies, in accordance to need.
• Help to clients in the process of connecting with other services available in the community, such as counseling, support, parenting, childcare, and education.
• Information on services for newcomers to Canada.
• Assistance in ensuring appropriate self care, access to leisure activities and to sport equipments.
• Assistance in practical matters, such as: budgeting, nutrition, obtaining clothing, household items, and health products.

This program is a collaborative project between A Safe Place, Lurana Shelter, and Win House.

Telephone: (780) 416 - 7043

Children Exposed to Violence: Moms and Children’s Group

We offer a support group for women and their children who have experienced or witnessed family violence. Families can develop valuable coping skills in dealing with the effect and the impact of family violence.

The program is offered to families who stay at the shelter as well as to families who are not and come from the larger community. It is a program for parents with children between the ages of 6 and 12 years. The group is co-facilitated by a Child Care worker, a Youth worker, and a Social worker so a rich variety of perspectives are integrated.

The support group focuses on the parent-child relationship, affected in a variety of ways by the reality of living with family violence. Suitable children activities are aimed at helping children identify their feelings, verbalize them and learn non-violent ways of handling problems.

Attendance benefits both, mothers and their children, in a variety of ways. The following benefits have been identified:

• It provides children with an increased understanding of their experience, as well as the development of self-esteem and valuable coping and social skills.
• Increases women’s knowledge about the impact of abuse on children, and about the value and importance of safety planning. It develops parenting skills, and increases parent’s knowledge about normal children’s developmental stages.

All the sessions of the parent-children support group start with a warm healthy meal and end with a fun activity (such as painting, crafts, and songs) that the mothers and children share. All the materials needed are included and baby sitting is provided free of charge as required.

Telephone: (780) 464 - 7233

Women’s Evening Support Group

We offer also an ongoing drop in group for women, which is open to women residing in shelter as well as to women residing in the larger community. Women meet weekly to learn from each other, share their stories, and grow together.

The group is co-facilitated by social workers. It offers opportunities for increasing participants’ knowledge and understanding of the dynamics of family violence, of ongoing safety planning, of legal issues, and of the variety of community resources available. Importantly, women gain access to support while in a safe environment.

Telephone: (780) 464 - 7233