Calgary Counselling Centre is a non profit organization committed to providing compassionate, professional, and affordable counselling services to Calgarians.

Through counselling and group programs, the centre helps individuals , families, couples, children, men and women resolve emotional and social problems. Through its ongoing research and education programs, Calgary Counselling Centre strives to meet the changing needs of our community.

Starting from a small team of dedicated individuals and a few programs, the Centre has grown to be a recognized leader in the treatment of family violence, children's programs, eating disorders, research, training, and education.

The Centre's corporate logo is a tree, which represents growth, change and the livelihood of those individuals who come to the Centre for counselling. The Centre has always helped its clients by focusing on three general areas of counselling — personal distress, interpersonal relationships and social relationships.

With passion and dedication Calgary Counselling Centre helps individuals, couples, families and groups build better lives.   

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Calgary Counselling Centre began its life in 1962 when it was established as the Pastoral Institute by a dedicated, young Minister with a vision, a small but tireless circle of supporters, and one room in the basement of the Calgary Central United Church. The need for such an institution was immediately obvious as people flooded through the doors.

Since 1962, Calgary’s population has more than tripled. The Centre has seen a lot of growth and change as well. Change has been a key constant for the Centre: change in our city and its population, in the challenges for our schools and neighborhoods, in the diversity of our cultures, and in the economic environment of business and industry.

During the 40 years Calgary Counselling Centre has existed, thousands of people have found ways to help themselves at the Centre. They came with a host of different problems and, eventually, with help from Centre staff, they came to rely on themselves for the strength and knowledge they needed to live happier, more balanced lives.

Today, Calgary Counselling Centre addresses almost 8,000 new requests for service per year, employs 58 full and part-time clinical staff and has an established and diverse Board of Directors. The Centre provides students of social work, psychology, and marriage and family therapy from all over the world the opportunity to achieve professional accreditation. We are a respected research facility in regard to such pressing issues as domestic violence, divorce and separation, depression, eating disorders and more. And, of most importance, we continue to meet the evolving counselling needs of our community.

The Centre has grown and changed, but at our base lie the same core values that have allowed us to make a difference in the lives of so many people over the last forty years: integrity, credibility, adaptability, education, and dedication to helping people find what they need and then teaching them to hold on to it. It was this set of values that was established in 1962, and it is this set of values that continues to define what the Centre is today.

Looking to the future, Calgary Counselling Centre recognizes the need to continue to adapt to community need by finding creative ways to support and strengthen families and community, to reach out to individuals and groups who feel marginalized or ignored, and to eliminate barriers to accessing the Centre’s services.  

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Calgary Counselling Centre has established official partnerships with 33 other community agencies and mental/social health organizations in our community. These relationships range from referral sources to program support to mandated counselling services.

It is important for the Centre to coordinate with its partners in the community in order to avoid duplication of services and competition for funding and profile.  

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As a charitable institution, Calgary Counselling Centre owes a great deal of gratitude to our donors and financial supporters. In order to continue serving our community, we appreciate the numerous organizations, foundations, corporations, and individuals who generously donated their time, talent, and financial support. Without these ongoing contributions, we would not be able to continue to offer the high quality of service that we provide.  

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Calgary Counselling Centre currently has almost 60 full-time, part-time and contract staff. In addition to regular and contract staff, the Centre supports 25 Interns and 12 Residents throughout the year. Services are provided by multi-disciplinary staff including psychologists, registered marriage and family therapists and registered social workers, pastoral counsellors, and dieticians. Interns and residents in the Calgary Counselling Centre's training program provide treatment under the supervision of senior staff.  

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Calgary Counselling Centre’s Board of Directors consists of 7 volunteers drawn from the public, justice, education, and corporate sectors. The Board is broken into two groups—The Executive Committee, and Directors. Current members include:

Executive Committee

Sydney Sharpe (Chair)
Sharpe Strategies Inc.

Tamasine Davies (Vice-Chair)
Soby Boyden Lenz

Trevor Williams
Bectell Investments Limited

Robbie Babins-Wagner
Calgary Counselling Centre

Directors

Gillian Basford
Delcor Management Inc.

Judge E.R.R. (Ted) Carruthers
Provincial Court - Family Division

Barry Cochran
SAIT Polytechnic

Don Engle
Welton Energy

Bill Gourley
Nexen Inc.

Dale Green
Dale Green - Dale Green & Associates, Century 21 Castlewood Agencies

Bente Nelson
EnCana Corporation

Dr. Jeanette Nicholls
Nicholls Consulting Ltd.

John Watson
Community volunteer

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