Centraide Quebec, Chaudiere-Appalaches et Bas-Saint-Laurent is a 4-star rated, financially transparent charity. It has an above average results reporting grade and its overhead spending is within Ci’s reasonable range. The charity has $13.8m in reserve funds, which can cover nine months of annual program costs.

Founded in 1945, Centraide (United Way) Quebec, Chaudiere-Appalaches et Bas-Saint-Laurent raises funds to address human needs in Quebec City and its surrounding regions. In 2018, Centraide Quebec et Chaudiere-Appalaches merged with Centraide KRTB Côte-du-Sud and Centraide Bas-Saint-Laurent. 

In its Mémoire Pauvreté report, Centraide Quebec, Chaudiere-Appalaches et Bas-Saint-Laurent states that between 790,000 and 1.59 million Québécois are experiencing poverty in January 2023. It adds that the pandemic and the housing crisis in Quebec have worsened the issue, aggravating problems of mental health, affordable housing, school drop-out rates and gender inequality. The charity funds local organizations that strive to improve living conditions. Its four main focus areas are Breaking Social Isolation, Supporting Youth Success, Ensuring Basic Necessities and Building Communities. In total, it granted $19.4 million in F2022, a 7% increase compared with F2021.

Breaking Social Isolation

Breaking Social Isolation focuses on providing marginalised people with ways to feel connected with society. In F2022, the charity granted $5.5 million to support 134 organisations and three projects fighting social isolation. It adds that 335 people have participated in activities to help them reintegrate into society. The biggest grants went to Au Bercail ($146k), Service d’entraide Basse-Ville ($134k) and Alter Justice ($121k).

Supporting Youth Success

Supporting Youth Success aims to provide every child with a strong start in life. Centraide Quebec reports that a third of students have considered dropping out of school because of the pandemic. In F2022, the charity granted $4.1 million to 93 organisations supporting the success of young people. The charity reports that in the last year, nearly 10,000 young people have connected with Centraide staff and volunteers in the street. The biggest grants for this cause went to Projet Intervention Prostitution Québec ($159k), Le Pignon Bleu ($145k) and L’Évasion Saint-Pie K ($123k).

Ensuring Basic Necessities

Ensuring Basic Necessities focuses on providing needs such as food, housing, clothes, transport and jobs. According to Centraide Quebec, by winter 2022, 20% of adults in the Quebec area lived in food insecure households. In F2022, it disbursed $2.2 million to 32 organisations providing basic needs to people in poverty. It also supported seven projects with the same goal. The biggest grant recipients were Moisson Québec ($277k), Bureau d’animation et information logement ($157k) and Association coopérative d’économie familiale de Québec ($148k).

Building communities 

Building communities funds local organisations to help them improve living conditions in their neighbourhoods. In F2022, Centraide Quebec granted $816k to support 15 organisations and two projects focused on this cause. It adds that it helped 1,447 people participate in sports and other activities for free or at a reduced cost. Its biggest grants went to Centre d'information et de référence de la Capitale-Nationale et de la Chaudière- Appalaches ($180k), Bénévoles d'Expertise ($117k) and La Ruche Vanier ($114k).

In F2022, the charity reports that 123 Centraide speakers presented 192 testimonials and 75 presentations to companies about poverty, vulnerability and social exclusion. These presentations reached 4,000 people.

Centraide Quebec, Chaudiere-Appalaches et Bas-Saint-Laurent is financially transparent. Its audited financial statements are publicly available on its website.

Centraide Quebec, Chaudiere-Appalaches et Bas-Saint-Laurent has donations of $19.9m in F2022. Administrative costs are 4% of revenues (less investment income) and fundraising costs are 13% of donations. This results in total overhead spending of 16%. This means that, for every dollar donated, 84 cents are available for programs. This is within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending.

Centraide Quebec, Chaudiere-Appalaches et Bas-Saint-Laurent has $13.8m in reserve funds, of which $764k is donor endowed. Excluding donor-endowed funds, the charity could cover 72% or about nine months of annual program costs.

At the time of this profile update, the charity’s F2022 T3010 filing with the CRA is not publicly available. Hence, the most recent staff compensation information is from F2021.

This charity report is an update that has been sent to Centraide Quebec, Chaudiere-Appalaches et Bas-Saint-Laurent for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.

Updated July 27, 2023 by Victoria Allder.