CUPS Calgary Society is a three-star rated, financially transparent charity with Fair demonstrated impact. It has a strong results reporting grade and its overhead spending is within Ci’s reasonable range. The charity has $5.7m in reserve funds, which can cover five months of annual program costs.

Founded in 1989, CUPS Calgary Society (CUPS) works to help Calgarians affected by poverty and traumatic events become self-sufficient. The services CUPS provides focus on three key areas: Housing & Economic Support, Health, and Family & Child Development. In F2023, the charity reports helping 7,695 individuals through its programs.

Housing and Economic Support – 44% of program spending

CUPS reports that in 2020, 9.2% of Albertans were classified as low income. In 2016, 11% of Calgarians were classified as low income. The charity adds that in Calgary in 2021, 1,935 individuals were experiencing homelessness. Individuals often lose housing as a result of job loss, unaffordable rent or substance use. CUPS offers programs focused on housing and financial stability. Its Community Development Housing program offers low-market rentals in four apartment buildings in Calgary. The Key Case Management program focuses on maintaining long-term housing stability and improving physical and mental well-being. This program is directed towards individuals who have faced homelessness but have some form of income. The Care Coordinator program helps people address immediate needs and connects them to support services. In F2023, 262 clients received help in obtaining their government-issued identification and 424 clients received gift cards to purchase basic necessities. The charity spent 2,732 hours helping clients access services through the Client Navigation program. Other housing and financial support programs include the Graduated Rent Subsidy Program, a virtual tax clinic and a crisis intervention fund.

Health – 36% of program spending

CUPS highlights that research finds that people with low socio-economic status are twice as likely to have serious illnesses or to die prematurely. To tackle this, the charity provides a variety of health programs. CUPS Health Clinic serves low-income Calgarians in need of medical care and without a regular family doctor. The Health Clinic provided 49,624 points of service in F2023. The Primary Health team includes physicians, nurse practitioners and an occupational therapist. Services include check-ups, health screenings, medial treatments and referrals. The Connect 2 Care and Allied Mobile Palliative Partnership programs focus on bringing healthcare to socially vulnerable people. These programs worked with 599 people in F2023. The charity’s Mental Health Clinic is accessible by clients that have been assessed by a CUPS clinician. The clinic provides addiction counselling, psychiatric assessment and Community Treatment Order support. Other health programs include Opioid Agonist Treatment, Street Outreach Addictions Team, Prenatal & Family Care, Diabetes Group, Liver Clinic and Specialist Care.

Family & Child Development – 20% of program spending

The charity reports that, according to Statistics Canada (2021), 11% of children in Calgary live in low-income households. The charity adds that the stress of living in poverty significantly affects a child’s ability to learn. CUPS’ childcare and parenting programs include the Child Development Centre and the Family Development Centre. The Child Development Centre offers preschool and kindergarten to children aged three to six from low-income households. The centre provides access to health professionals such as pediatricians and physiotherapists. 58 children were enrolled at the Child Development Centre in F2023. The Family Development Centre helps families that are expecting children through parenting education courses.

CUPS Calgary Society is financially transparent. Its audited financial statements are publicly available on its website.

In F2023, CUPS received $10.5m in donations and special events revenue. The charity received $7.7m in government funding, representing 41% of total revenue. Administrative costs are 14% of total revenue excluding investment income. Fundraising costs are 4% of donations. This results in total overhead spending of 18%. For every dollar donated to the charity, 82 cents are available for the charity’s programs.

CUPS has $5.7m in reserve funds, which can cover around five months of annual program costs.

In F2023, CUPS had significant capital spending of $2.6m. This relates to renovations of CUPS’ main office, to create a safer and more accessible space for clients. The renovations were completed in April 2023.

At the time of this profile update, the charity’s F2023 T3010 is not publicly available. Hence, the most recent staff compensation information is from F2022.

This charity report is an update that has been sent to CUPS Calgary Society for review. Comments and edits may be forthcoming.

Updated on August 16, 2023 by Victoria Allder.