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![\"Mikaela](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4432462_web1_260629-Fire-trucks-00037.jpg\")
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Mikaela Mackenzie\/Free Press files<\/p>\n
Mayor Scott Gillingham<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery day, our 911 dispatchers receive calls from Winnipeggers who are in distress, dealing with complex mental health struggles, addiction, or wellness concerns,\u201d Mayor Scott Gillingham said after releasing a report on the proposal Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cRight now, the system defaults to sending police, firefighters, or paramedics because, really, (those are) the only options that are available at this moment. But a police car, a fire truck, or an ambulance isn\u2019t always the right tool for the job, nor the most appropriate response to every call.\u201d<\/p>\n
A third-party report led by Pensa Consulting Inc. found the city doesn\u2019t struggle with the lack of services, but the \u201climited integration and formal pathways connecting existing services and systems.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe opportunity is to better connect these existing strengths through a co-ordinated system that delivers compassionate, culturally responsive, trauma-informed care, and connects people to the supports they need,\u201d said Maria Cotroneo of Pensa Consulting.<\/p>\n
After an analysis, the report concluded that 3,855 Winnipeg Police Service calls, or nearly 8,000 hours of officer time, and 6,356 Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service calls could be re-directed to a community response model annually.<\/p>\n
The proposal suggests crisis response teams could respond to wellness checks, mental health crises and substance use, for example.<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
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City council\u2019s executive policy committee voted in favour of contracting Pensa Consulting to build a proposal for a service that would direct non-emergency calls away from police, firefighters and paramedics in December.<\/p>\n
Gillingham first suggested the idea of an additional emergency pathway in 2024. He said councillors will consider the proposal in September. He did not have a proposed start date, but said if it is approved, a pilot project would get the ball rolling before it could be expanded.<\/p>\n
Another step, he said, is buy-in from the province.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis model anticipates the city and the province are in partnership together, kind of co-own this \u2026 they have this (report) now, they need time to look at it, they need time to review it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n
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Malak Abas Malak Abas is a city reporter at the Free Press. Born and raised in Winnipeg\u2019s North End, she led the campus paper at the University of Manitoba before joining the Free Press in 2020. Read more about Malak<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Malak produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Reporter
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