About

For over 50 years, St. Leonard’s Community Services, London and Region has been dedicated to a community where everyone feels safe, valued and supported.  St Leonard’s provides a range of services including youth and adult community programs, school-based youth programs, and adult residential programs.

St. Leonard’s was founded in 1969 through the efforts and leadership of the Bishop Cronyn Memorial Church congregation and founding members Allan Henderson, Jeffery Flinn and Hume Cronyn.

Other influential people included then Mayor Jane Bigelow and Archdeacon Kenneth Bolton who later chronicled the movement in his book “Halfway Home”.

St. Leonard’s Society of Canada have named several awards in honour of Londoners who dedicated great efforts to St. Leonard’s and the halfway house movement of Canada. Catholic Bishop John Cody, Anglican Bishop George Luxton and former Executive Director Ray Gallagher all figured prominently in the history of the London affiliate and the National Society.

While St. Leonard’s Society of London is our legal name, today, St. Leonard’s is known as St. Leonard’s Community Services, London & Region (SLCS).  SLCS offers community-based support programs and residential centres that:

• Assist persons in conflict, or at risk of conflict, with the justice system, all within a restorative practices framework
• Develop, implement and advocate for improved policies, procedures and service delivery within the justice system to assist in the prevention of crime
• Promote acceptance of responsibility and accountability by persons in conflict with the law to assist with changing behaviour that contributes to crime
• Promote understanding and education to our communities about their responsibility in both the incidence of crime and in the manner in which society responds to it

While SLCS continues to evaluate and respond to the needs of the communities it serves, the spirit of SLCS remains consistent with the original core values its founding members shared.