Organizational outlook: Chief Jim MacSween leads widespread changes
York Regional Police prepares for 2025 and beyond with an expanded workforce, improved technologies and service offerings and a reshaped organizational structure
Policing has become increasingly complex and challenging, especially as here in York Region we have experienced a rise in violent crime and property crime over the last few years.
As we look toward 2025 and beyond, we are preparing to expand our workforce, upgrade our technology, adopt new strategies to deal with new challenges and continuously improve the services we offer to the public.
Improving our Services to Meet New Challenges
In November 2024, York Regional Police, with the support of the York Regional Police Service Board, received approval from the York Region Council for our 2025 police operating and capital budget.
The approved net operating budget for 2025 is $441.5 million, representing an increase of 7.7 percent over 2024. The 2025 capital budget is $32.0 million, with capital spending authority for multiple-year projects of $40.1 million.
This budget enables our organization to continue to deliver nationally recognized crime prevention and law enforcement programs as well as investigative leadership to our more than 1.25 million citizens living in York Region.
YRP will be hiring 154 additional members in 2025, expanding our frontline, investigative and support staff – our largest hiring increase in over two decades. The additional members will strengthen YRP’s ability to respond to and actively investigate crimes while improving crime prevention strategies and partnerships to ensure the safety and well-being of the residents of York Region.
The capital budget will provide funding for equipment and vehicles needed for additional members; information technology to refresh and modernize service delivery to enhance our engagement with the community; facilities renovations and the building of the new helicopter hangar in East Gwillimbury; and the purchase of specialized equipment for investigative and forensic purposes.
The 2025 budget supports our policing environment and business plan, with a continued focus on our people and our community.
“Over the last few years York Region has been experiencing a significant rise in violent crime and property crime. Undoubtedly, the policing environment for our members and our community has become increasingly complex,” said Chief Jim MacSween. “This budget provides the resources that are required to address recent crime trends, while also preparing the organization for the future.”
Creating efficiencies, empowering leaders and members
Effective February 1, 2025, York Regional Police has a new organizational structure.
The changes were made to better align our strategic pillars and goals, provide greater balance across all areas of our organization and enhance strategic level support for leaders.
Our Community Safety Branch, responsible for our five regional districts, will now include our Real Time Operations Centre, which manages frontline resource allocation and our 9-1-1 Communications Centre. A staff superintendent, a new rank to the organization, will oversee the Community Safety Branch. This staff superintendent will work with district superintendents and other organizational leaders to create stronger alignment and operational effectiveness between the districts.
“If there are staffing issues or pressing needs in certain districts due to events or operations, we can now more easily move resources and staff between the districts,” said Steven Pinto, Director of Strategic Services, the bureau that spearheaded the changes.
We have also created a new People and Culture Branch. The new branch brings together the Professionalism, Leadership and Inclusion Office, responsible for professional development and equity initiatives, with People, Wellness and Talent, our human resources and wellness hub. This restructure also brings Civilian and Uniform Recruiting under one roof, which were previously under separate command structures.
“This branch will offer members support from the recruitment process, to the moment they’re hired and all the way until retirement,” said Pinto. “When we talk about more avenues for our members to find support, it’s all housed in one place.”
We are creating stronger alignment around financial planning as well, creating a civilian financial executive position that reports to the Chief of Police.
“This executive will manage the highest budget decision-making and support the entire organization,” said Pinto.
To offer additional support to the organization’s leadership, a staff superintendent now oversees Executive Services, an area under the Chief of Police that manages Business Intelligence and Data Analytics, Strategic Services and Marketing, Communications and Brand. Also, several staff officers, at the rank of staff sergeant, have been tasked with liaising between Deputy Chiefs and their areas of command to ensure stronger operational efficiency.
“Employees across YRP will now benefit from quicker decision-making by leaders, streamlining processes, projects and procedures and empowering staff with more tools and resources to do their jobs effectively,” Pinto said.
Our new organizational structure will help us meet the challenges of a rapidly growing region and an increasingly complex policing environment, all while ensuring our members are empowered to do their jobs to the best of their abilities and cared for in every facet of their professional and personal lives.
