Mental health is key to our well-being and to our capacity to enjoy life. Asking for help means that you want to make changes or take steps towards your mental health goals. In this section, you will find information and resources to help face the challenges to mental health in your daily life.

Mental Health Emergencies

If you are having a mental health emergency, please call 9-1-1, go to your local hospital or contact any one of the help lines below:

Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868

LGBT Youth Line: text 647-694-4275 (Sunday to Friday, 4:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.) 

Trans Lifeline: 1-877-330-6366 (Monday through Friday, 1:00 p.m. to 9 p.m.)

Suicide Crisis Line: 9-8-8

Crisis Outreach and Support Team (COAST)

The Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) Crisis Outreach and Support Team (COAST) provides Halton residents, aged 16 and over, experiencing a mental health crisis with immediate outreach and support. Anyone can call the COAST crisis line which is answered by a trained mental health crisis worker 24-hours-a-day, seven days a week. BVB V

COAST crisis line: 1-877-825-9011

COAST is funded by the Canadian Mental Health Association of Halton and by the Ontario Ministry of Health.

Learn more about the COAST crisis line from the Canadian Mental Health Association of Halton.

Please also see the Canadian Mental Health Association of Halton's Resource Guide.

Mobile Crisis Rapid Response Team

Our Mobile Crisis Rapid Response Teams (MCRRT), in partnership with St. Joseph’s Healthcare and Halton Healthcare, are made up of police officers, psychologists and mental health professionals trained to defuse or de-escalate crisis situations. These teams also advocate for those in crisis and ensure mental health assessments are completed where they are needed most.

Reach Out Centre for Kids (R.O.C.K.)

In 2019, the HRPS signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Reach Out Centre for Kids (R.O.C.K) which is a local mental health agency. This Memorandum of Understanding allows our officers to directly refer youth under the age of 17 and their families to the R.O.C.K for mental health support and follow up. In this way, we can ensure children, youth and their families can get the appropriate help and support when they need it the most. 

ROCK's Crisis Response Program provides immediate outreach for children and youth, their parents/caregivers, and community members. The Crisis Response telephone number will connect you to our 24-hour answering service. You will then be connected with a crisis counsellor as soon as possible.

R.O.C.K. Crisis Response: 905-878-9785

For more information about R.O.C.K. services, including their virtual walk-in clinics and their live answer service, please visit the R.O.C.K. website. 

Crisis Intervention Training

The Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) is committed to providing enhanced mental health training to all of our members, including our frontline officers and our civilian members. Our Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) is a 40-hour course that equips our members with the knowledge and skills to assist those dealing with a mental health crisis. This training incorporates community collaboration into the curriculum including partnerships with the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), Local Health Integration Networks (LHINs) and other mental health organizations. CIT is an integral part of our mental health response strategy and will make us the first police service in Ontario to have all frontline officers and staff certified in this training. 

Empathy-Based Training

In 2019, the Halton Regional Police Service partnered with AXON to become the first police service in Canada to introduce virtual reality empathy based training to its members. This virtual reality empathy based training was introduced to better position our members to respond to dynamic mental health crises in the community. This training provides a first-hand experience of what someone going through a mental health crisis is seeing and feeling. The training also provides the same opportunity and experience through the perspective of a responding officer. This ensures that our members approach these types of situations with empathy and understanding and are more able to manage and de-escalate a potentially high risk situation.