Founded in 1973, Nellie’s is Toronto’s first women’s shelter. Named for Canada’s pioneering suffragette, Nellie McClung, it was co-founded by a group of female activists including June Callwood. Nellie’s began as a shelter with 16 beds for homeless women, fleeing domestic abuse. Today, Nellie’s is a 36-bed emergency shelter for women leaving domestic violence and also other issues like poverty and mental health. Its goal is to ensure the women it serves move on to safe and affordable housing so they do not return to violent situations. Nellie’s is a community-based feminist charity that sees itself as anti-racism and anti-oppression. It is committed to social change through education and advocacy, to achieve social justice for all women and children.

Women come to Nellie’s from all backgrounds: women who are pregnant, immigrants, some single, some with children. In F2019, Nellie’s gave shelter to 87 women and their children. Children are 38% of the people Nellie’s helped in F2019. Nellie’s housed 141 women and children in F2019, which is even with F2017 as it is operating at full capacity. In F2019, two babies were born to women staying at Nellie’s.

Nellie’s provides a 24-hour crisis line. In F2019 Nellie’s answered 1,285 crisis calls, 4% fewer than in F2018. It provided 508 referrals to other services. In F2019, Nellies provide 1,470 one-on-one counselling sessions. Women can stay at Nellie’s for up to four months (longer if dealing with legal or immigration issues). Other shelters only permit stays of one to two months.

In addition, Nellie’s has added programs (helping mothers find child-care, register for schools, deal with Children’s Aid), and programs for children like art programs and summer camp, to help children process the violence they may have witnessed.

Beyond being an emergency shelter, Nellie’s includes its community with a weekly drop-in dinner to women and children who are homeless or living in poverty. About 40 women each week gather for this meal to enjoy good food and company. With Second Harvest, one a week, Nellie’s has a Supper Surprise providing 60-70 women each week food to take home.

In the News: $1.6 million fundraising campaign for a bigger house. Nellie’s is moving into a new, bigger house. In May 2018, Nellie’s bought a new building with the Ontario government contributing $12.0m of the estimated $13.6m total costs. Nellie’s needs at least $1.6m in donations to open this new shelter. It will have 40 beds with significantly more room that its present shelter that was originally for 16 beds, and maxed out with 36 beds currently. Bunk beds can only do so much.

Nellie’s is a small charity with donations of $989k (less than $1 million). United Way Toronto is Nellie’s largest donor with a $232k grant in F2019, 7% less than in F2017. The Ontario and Toronto governments provide 65% of Nellie’s program funding. 

Nellie’s reports administrative costs are 4% of total revenues (excluding the huge capital grant for its new house) and fundraising costs are 12% of donations. Overhead spending in F2019 is 13%. For every dollar donated, 87 cents go to the cause. This is within Ci’s reasonable range.

Nellie’s has no endowments or investments. It has cash reserves of $1.1m. Relative to its annual program costs, these cash reserves are 49% or a 6-month funding cushion.

This report is generously funded by the E.W. Bickle Foundation to help other donors interested in supporting charities in the Greater Toronto Area.

This report has been sent to Nellie's. Changes and corrections may be forthcoming.

Report posted on December 1, 2019 by Kate Bahen.