New member joins Police Service Board

*Issued on behalf of the Guelph Police Service Board

The Guelph Police Service Board is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Michael Plate to the Board. Mr. Plate was sworn in as a member of the Board on October 15, 2025. Mr. Plate was appointed to the Board by the Solicitor General as a provincial appointee for a period of two years.

Calling Guelph home for the last 15 years, Michael Plate is a retired Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) officer with over 30 years of policing experience and commitment to public service.

During his tenure with the OPP, he served primarily in front-line law enforcement, policy and training development. He spent several years working at the Guelph OPP detachment before moving the newly-created Wellington County OPP.

Working in both rural and urban centres strengthened his communication skills and emphasized the importance of inclusivity, patience, flexibility, and professionalism when engaging with the public to ensure they felt heard and understood.

For more than two decades, Mr. Plate dedicated his career as the Provincial Field Coordinator, combating impaired driving to keep Ontario’s roads safe. He collaborated with both the Ministry of the Solicitor General and the Ministry of the Attorney General, the Canadian Alcohol Test Committee and the Centre of Forensic Sciences to modernize impaired driver training and develop quality assurance systems to help tighten the law on impaired driving.

Mr. Plate is a proud member of the Guelph community, supporting local events like the Terry Fox Run and the Run for the Cure, and is currently the Vice President of the Guelph Ringette Association.

He is looking forward to continuing to serve the community and maintaining his policing roots as a member of the Guelph Police Service Board.

“We welcome Mr. Plate to the Board,” said Peter McSherry, Chair of the Board. “Mr. Plate’s experience in the policing sector and his extensive volunteer experience in the community will be a significant asset in our continuation of good governance for our exceptional police force.”

The Guelph Police Service Board is comprised of five members. Two are appointed by the Province; two are members of City Council, and one is a community representative appointed to the Board by City Council. Mr. Plate replaces Ms. Jane Armstrong, whose term of appointment as a Provincial representative expired in April, 2025.