True North Society is a 4-star charity, with a B+ Results Reporting grade, which is above average. Its overhead spending is outside Ci’s reasonable range and its reserve funds can cover program costs for six months, which is within Ci’s reasonable range.

Founded in 1993, True North Society works to break the cycle of abuse by providing emergency shelter, outreach services, and prevention education to individuals and families experiencing domestic violence and family abuse. Operating in Strathmore, Alberta it is the first domestic shelter in Canada to offer help to men experiencing abuse and helps all genders.

True North Society’s programs include a 24-hour Crisis Line, an Emergency Shelter program and an Outreach and Education program. The charity did not provide a program spending breakdown in its latest annual report.

24-Hour Crisis line serves as the main entry point for services, receiving 1,431 calls in F2025, averaging 15-20 minutes. Staff conduct safety planning, create packing lists, arrange pet safekeeping, and coordinate transportation.

Emergency Shelter Services provide safe accommodation with wraparound support including housing assistance, employment support, income supports, childcare, basic needs, counselling access, and transportation. The average length of stay for families in F2025 was 31 days, with 42% of residents staying longer than 30 days, a significant increase from 17% on average over the last five years. The charity reports completing 46 danger assessments and making 239 referrals to support in F2025.

Outreach and Education supports both survivors living in the community and the wider public through prevention and education. It offers guidance to those no longer in shelter but who still need help with housing, legal issues, and local services. The program runs activities for children and families, including The Rec Room, which served 178 children in F2025 through 2,915 hours of programming. The charity also provides a Home Library and a Family Enjoyment Program, which supported 89 families with early learning, developmental screening, and parenting support. True North Society also partnered with Trellis Family Resource Network to run a teen drop-in space in Strathmore and Chestermere. Across all activities, the charity reached 2,743 people through workshops and community events focused on building healthy relationships and preventing abuse.

In 2023–2024, the charity reported that about one in four people leaving the shelter moved into unstable housing. To respond to this need, the charity is developing Finding Your True North, a new housing initiative that will provide safe, affordable accommodation and trauma-informed support for survivors as they rebuild stability after leaving emergency shelter.

True North Society is financially transparent. Its audited financial statements follow line-item costing, which does not align with financial reporting best practices. This means Ci referred to its T3010 filings to report program, administrative, and fundraising costs.

True North Society received $89k in donations in F2025, as well as $20k in donated goods and $78k in special events fundraising. True North Society received $1.7m in government funding, representing 89% of total revenue. True North Society spent $1.5m on its programs, representing 79% of revenue. The charity recorded a deficit of $245k, meaning it drew on its reserves to fund its operations.

True North Society spent $20k on fundraising, which is 12% of donations, and $624k on administrative costs, which is 34% of revenue (excluding investment income). For every dollar donated to the charity, 55 cents are available to go to the cause. This is outside Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending, which is between 65-95.

True North Society has $838k in reserve funds (cash and investments). The reserves can cover 56% or six months of its annual program costs. This is within Ci’s reasonable range.

This report is an update that has been sent to True North Society, created on October 21, 2025, by Victoria Allder.