Big Brothers Big Sisters of Calgary and Area is a five-star, financially transparent charity. Its results reporting grade is A, which is above average. Ci has given this charity an Average rating for demonstrated impact per dollar spent and its overhead spending is inside Ci’s reasonable range.

Founded in 1994, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Calgary and Area (BBSCA) runs mentorship programs. The charity matches children and youth facing adversity with an adult mentor. In F2025, BBSCA reports that at intake the children and youths it served reported the following: 71% were experiencing bullying, 63% were experiencing mental health issues, and 53% were experiencing social isolation.

A Charity Intelligence 2024 Top 100 Rated Charity.

BBSCA operates two mentoring programs: Community Mentoring and In-School Mentoring. Charity Intelligence estimates BBSCA spent $2.5m on its programs in its fiscal year ending March 2025 (F2025). Ci did not find a breakdown of program spending in the charity's annual report or on its website.

Community Mentoring takes place on evenings and weekends. The charity matches a child or youth (aged 6-24) with an adult mentor. They meet three to four times per month for two to five hours. Matches take part in activities such as sports, cooking, cultural events, movies, and hiking. In F2025, BBSCA reports facilitating 325 community matches. This benefited 302 community mentees.

In-School Mentoring takes place during the school day. The charity serves children and youth (aged 6-12) who have been referred by their school. The mentor meets with the mentee for one hour each week during the school year. Matches take part in activities such as puzzles, board games, baking, and science experiments. In F2025, BBSCA reports facilitating 792 in-school matches. This benefitted 642 in-school mentees.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Calgary and Area’s audited financial statements follow line-item costing, which is not a best practice. This means its audited financial statements do not clearly differentiate between program, administrative, and fundraising costs.

In F2025 BBSCA received $1.9m in donations and special events fundraising. It also received $1.4m in government funding. Government funding is 38% of total revenue.

Administrative costs are 14% of revenues (excluding investment income). Fundraising costs are 18% of donations. This results in total overhead spending of 33%. For every dollar donated, 67 cents are available to go to the cause. This falls within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending.

BBSCA spent $2.5m on its programs in F2025 excluding donated goods used, which is 71% of its revenue excluding donated goods. In F2025 it had a surplus of $169k.

BBSCA has $2.8m in reserve funds (cash and investments). The reserves can cover 112%, or one year and one month of program costs.

This charity report is an update that has been sent for review to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Calgary and Area. Changes and edits may be forthcoming. 

Updated on June 27, 2025, by Grady Simpson.