Program Details

Family Resource Network programs focus on supporting the whole family. This includes providing caregivers and parents with skills and knowledge to strengthen family relationship, teaching children and teens to cope with trauma and improve child and youth development by building resilience and fostering well-being.

Learn more about our programs:

This program includes free virtual workshops (1.5 to 2 hours typically) for parents and caregivers tackling common issues and topics that come up for families with children of all ages. Topics may include anxiety in children, healthy sleep routines, parenting styles, challenging behaviours and coping skills and many more. Activities to build connection and healthy relationships along with support/education groups are also offered.

Click here to view our online workshop calendar 

This program is  provided by YW Calgary

Questions & Registration: call 403.262.0497 or email us

This program offers free in-home support (virtually or face-to-face) to parents of children under age 6, to build skills and problem solving strategies that will enable effective and safe home environments for kids. Open to all parents looking for coaching and parenting suggestions for their children under the age of 6.

Our warm and experienced facilitators provide free home visitation support to parents to build skills and problem solving strategies that will enable effective and safe home environments for kids. Facilitators will connect with families in their home or community.

This program is provided by YW Calgary.

Questions & Registration: call 403.262.0497 or email us

This program supports young parents and soon-to-be parents under the age of 25 and their families.

Families can access a variety of supports, including:

  • Booking medical appointments such as ultrasounds, bloodwork, specialist appointments and more
  • Food Bank referrals
  • Resources and referrals to access furniture, clothing, haircuts, diapers, toys, etc.
  • Income support
  • Referrals to addictions workers and counsellors
  • Parenting classes
  • And more

This program, provided by The Alex, runs out of the Youth Health Centre at The Alex.
Located near the Franklin LRT station 104-2840 2 Ave SE.

Questions & Registration: call 403.262.0497 or email us

Watch this video about the Alex

Fathers Moving Forward (FMF) is a strength-based caregiver support program for father parental figures. The program helps young fathers (14-30) and their children up to 18 years of age.

FMF provides support in four key areas:

Individual support to build youth and parental resilience, including system navigation, strengthening natural supports, education and employment, basic needs, positive parenting and increasing social and cultural connections in the community;

Parenting Together, a weekly co-parenting group to help parents and their co-parenting partners develop interpersonal skills to establish and maintain a supportive co-parenting alliance regardless of whether the couple lives together or remains romantically involved;

Being a Dad, a father figure parenting group designed to develop attitudes and skills for parenting

Dads Money Management, a financial literacy education group program that follows Momentum’s Financial Literacy Training Curriculum.

Dads Play Nights, Drop-in opportunities that allow father figures the opportunity to connect with their child and others in a fun, engaging and educational way.

FMF is a community-based service that supports clients in their homes and community to meet the needs of young fathers.

This program is provided by Kindred.

Questions & Registration: call 403.262.0497 or email us

Rapid Access Counselling is a single-session counselling service, providing you with a supportive, change-focused conversation at the right time. Rapid Access Counselling can help with a challenge you’re facing right now through a 75-minute focused counselling appointment. This service is tailored to support caregivers and children with a focus on healthy child development, supporting caregiver capacity, and promoting resilience within the family. We can see children, youth, individuals, families, or couples for solution-focused support on a wide range of needs. People often tell us that one session is enough, however, if the issue persists or you’re facing a new challenge, you can book another appointment. Rapid Access Counselling can often be booked within a week or less and the service can be virtual or in person, depending on your preference.

This program is provided by Kindred
Located at 250, 707 10 Ave SW

Questions & Registration: call 403.262.0497 or email us

Infant/Parent Mental Health Support is designed to improve the quality of parent-child interaction.

Participants must be a low-income earner with young children (0-6 years-old). Siblings of the families will be considered for intervention as well, as the functioning of the whole family system is crucial.

  • Play Therapist: Will offer both individual and parent-child work using play therapy interventions, techniques and assessments.
  • Family Development Coaches: These individuals support the interventions of the Play Therapist and work to strengthen parent-child interactions, increase parenting capacity, and reduce toxic stress. Family Development Coaches will also use ATTACH intervention to support the parent’s interactions with the child.

This program is provided by CUPS.
Services will be delivered on site at in fully equipped therapy rooms and observation rooms.

Questions & Registration: call 403.262.0497 or email us

Big Brothers Big Sisters creates and nurtures one-to-one mentoring relationships for children and youth who are facing adversity. Each mentoring relationship (“match”) expresses care, challenges growth, provides support, shares power and expands possibilities.  Matches are supported to ensure positive and meaningful relationships that have a direct and lasting effect on the lives of the children and youth, their families, the mentors, and generations to follow.

The following mentoring programs are available

  • Teen Mentoring – Meeting weekly at the school, teen mentors meet with their mentees to build self-confidence and resiliency in elementary school students through a variety of activities including, board games, arts and crafts, reading and sports. You can be part of building better brains and remove barriers to success for younger people in your community.
  • Community Youth Mentoring – In this most recognized program, mentors meet with their mentees to explore the community, build natural supports and broaden their experiences of the world. This program matches youth between the ages of 13-18 with adult mentors to build strong developmental relationships.  Mentors encourage and empower young people to identify their strengths and passions.
  • PRISM – this community-based mentoring program connects mentors and young people ages 6-18 from the LGBTQ2S+ community. These mentoring relationships help young people to achieve goals, overcome challenges and try new things. A mentor understands the adversity faced by LGBTQ2S+ young people, supports the mentee and celebrates who they are.

These mentoring programs are provided by Big Brothers Big Sisters.

Questions & Registration: call 403.262.0497 or email us

Functional Family Therapy © (FFT) is an intensive, evidence-based therapy model that works with the child/youth and their entire family aimed at improving family cohesion, increasing the family’s protective factors and reducing risk factors. Our therapeutic program works with children and youth of all ages, 0-18 and is run in collaboration with our community partner, Carya.

This program is  provided by Carya

Questions & Registration: call 403.262.0497 or email us

Early Talks is a free program for children under three years old, helps combat language isolation by increasing caregiver skills and capacity by promoting nurturing relationships; therefore, accelerating child language skill development.

Infants and toddlers in Early Talks families vocalized about 50 more times each week during the program than their peers.

For every month a child’s family is in Early Talks, the child almost doubles their language/early literacy development.

For all inquiries, start the conversation by emailing us at earlytalks@ywcalgary.ca

About the network

The Family Resource Network is a collaborative group of community-based service providers offering prevention and early intervention services and supports for families with young children and teens.

YW Calgary coordinates the Calgary City Centre Family Resource Network programs and provides services alongside five other community partners, including CUPS, The Alex, Carya, Kindred, Big Brothers Big Sisters.