The Portage Family Abuse Prevention Centre has some new things planned for the upcoming year.

Executive director Joyce Schrader says they'll be participating in a shelter exchange, she explains what it is.

"Some staff will go out of province to review how services are in different shelters and others will come here so that's going to be pretty exciting. We're working through the Canadian Association of Shelters to do that."

Schrader notes she has heard good things about the process.

"The learning is incredible; the sharing of information and how, maybe, we could do something different and vice versa. So I heard that it's a fairly new process that we're starting, I just came back from Calgary and we are organising several shelters throughout the prairie provinces, but this is going to be across Canada."

Going into the new year she wishes everyone to keep warm, be safe and contribute to healthy families and communities.