About Us
Our History

The Crouch Neighbourhood Resource Centre was established in 1970 in the Crouch Branch Library on Hamilton Road.  It is the first Canadian, multi-service, inter-agency community centre housed in a branch library. Serving the Hamilton Road area, additional services were brought into the library to help area residents with individual, family, and community issues which are familiar to the central area of a city including poverty, literacy, crime, immigration, mental health issues etc.

In 1969, the London Public Library, Family and Children’s Services, Madame Vanier Children’s Services, London Board of Education, and Board of Health developed a proposal for a multi-service, inter-agency centre with a team of workers to be located in the Branch Library.

Goals:                                                                                                
1.   To provide more accessible services to area residents.
2.   To establish an inter-professional team approach to the delivery of human services.
3.   To initiate, through a community development process, preventative measures in dealing with neighbourhood concerns, problems, and visions.

The centre was developed following a Community Development organizational model; flexible and non-hierarchical, incorporating collective decision-making, and responsible to the community.

While services have incubated, evolved, changed, and expanded over the years to several locations throughout the community, the organizational structure and service model remains true to the Community Development philosophy.

In 1990, due to the fact that services had expanded beyond agency secondments and many newly developed services required funding proposals for staffing, an independent Board of Directors was formed and Crouch incorporated.

Currently, Crouch has grown to over 40 programs, services, projects, and events serving diverse people of all ages at 10 locations throughout the neighbourhood.

For more detailed and updated information about more specific programming and funding history of the Crouch Neighbourhood Resource Centre, please download Crouch detailed history or contact the centre at 519-642-7630 ext. 223.

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