Under the Community Service Order Program the Court can place offenders on a probation order or conditional sentence that requires them to perform a specific number of hours of community service work, as an alternative to incarceration. The work is performed for approved local governments, Indian Bands or non-profit organizations. Community service is work activity that:

• is normally performed by volunteers, and does not affect employment activities in the community
• creates visible benefits in the community
• involves the participant, preferably, working with other citizens rather than alone.
• does not include treatment or counseling.

Through the program offenders have an opportunity to repay their debt to society, gain work experience and learn that their work can be useful and is appreciated. The program also reduces demand for institutional space and facilitates community participation in the criminal justice system.

Offenders are usually referred to the program through a pre-sentence report or community service order report. In making its decision the Court may consider the following factors:

• Is the offender a risk to the community or the program?
• Is the offender able to perform community service work?
• Is there suitable work available? In a rural area, is the agency willing to accept the offender?
• Is the offender available to perform the work?

If an offender is deemed suitable, the Court determines the amount of community service to be worked, to a maximum of 240 hours. Some examples of work placements include nursing homes, senior citizen centres, libraries, hospitals, parks and recreation organizations, church organizations, service clubs and First Nations communities. Tasks can include maintenance, minor repair and janitorial work, snow removal, office work, food preparation and grounds maintenance.

Regional Program Coordinators or Probation Officers support the program by working with agencies to arrange suitable work placements in their regions. The coordinators/probation officers also supervise participants ordered to perform community service work, and submit reports to the Court. Offenders who fail to complete the required work or do not comply with the rules of the program could face further court sanction.

The following charts show the number of community service orders for male and female participants for 2009 and previous years, and the number of hours ordered and hours worked.

New community service order cases opened in the jurisdiction when sorted by ethnicity and sex appear as follows:

Ethnicity

Sex

Dollar value and hours of community service worked: (from closed cases)