United Way Saskatoon will be using the $3.3 million it raised last year to meet the needs of the city, but not without the input of the community itself.

Director of Community Impact Gary Beaudin says the United Way team spoke to 130 organizations and individuals in three consultations to find out which local social issues require the most attention.

“We didn’t ask them which agency we should support. We didn’t want to influence that. We asked them which issues are important. What are the important priorities you’re seeing in your world, and that kind of guides the way we give money out.”

The first consultation focused on agency and government partners. The second spoke to advocates for trans, senior, and disability rights, and the third event hosted Metis and Indigenous people.

“People said things like ‘There needs to be more work done in services and supports for women and girls who have experienced sexual violence. That’s a big problem, and that’s a deficiency in terms of accessibility to those services and supports’.”

Other priorities that came up during the discussions were drug use prevention, homelessness and housing, and senior support.