Charities and nonprofits meet high standards

24 more organizations accredited by Imagine Canada Standards Program

TORONTO, June 18, 2013 /CNW/ - Imagine Canada, the national umbrella for Canada's charities and nonprofits, today announces the latest group of 24 organizations to be accredited under its national Standards Program. This program now boasts a total of 45 organizations that have achieved the distinction of accreditation.

The Standards Program is a Canada-wide set of shared standards for charities and nonprofits designed to demonstrate their compliance in five fundamental areas: board governance; financial accountability and transparency; fundraising; staff management; and volunteer involvement. It helps organizations mitigate risk by ensuring that staff and volunteers understand and meet their legal, financial and fiduciary responsibilities.

"There is a sense of a shift among charities and nonprofits as more organizations reach towards self-regulation and a shared set of common standards. We, and the 24 organizations accredited this month are proud to be part of that shift," says Marcel Lauzière, president and CEO of Imagine Canada.

Builds Public Confidence
Among the Standards Program's goals are the ability to increase an organization's transparency and capacity, and to strengthen public confidence in individual organizations and the nonprofit sector as a whole. Accredited organizations are awarded a program Trustmark so they can showcase their achievement in their material, for example tax receipts, program brochures, website etc.

Transparent, peer-review process
Accredited organizations' policies and procedures in the five areas of compliance have been evaluated by a group of volunteers from the sector, and were found to be compliant with the rigorous, externally established standards. This helps staff focus on the mission of their organization, knowing that potential areas of concern have been addressed and that policies are in place.

Newly Accredited Organizations
	Allergy / Asthma Information Association
	Aurora Cultural Centre
	British Columbia SPCA
	Canadian Diabetes Association
	Canadian Feed the Children
	Cataraqui Conservation Foundation
	Cridge Centre for the Family, The
	CultureLink Settlement Services
	Food for Life Canada Charitable Corporation
	Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation
	Healthy Families Healthy Futures
	John Howard Society of Ontario
	Kids Help Phone
	London Health Sciences Foundation
	Ontario Lung Association
	Pathways to Education Canada
	Save the Children Canada
	St. Joseph's Healthcare Foundation
	United Way of London & Middlesex
	Volunteer Calgary
	Whistler Community Services Society
	WISH Inc. (Women in Second Stage Housing)
	WWF-Canada
	Youth Science Canada

The full list of accredited organizations is available at imaginecanada.ca/accreditedorganizations

The Standards Program is made possible with the financial contributions from founding and presenting sponsor Great-West Life, London Life and Canada Life; funded by BMO Financial Group and The Printing House; and, friends KCI (Ketchum Canada Inc.).

Additional information about the Standards Program available at imaginecanada.ca/standards

Imagine Canada is a national charitable organization whose cause is Canada's charities and nonprofits. Our three broad goals are to strengthen the sector's collective voice, create opportunities to connect and learn from each other, and build the sector's capacity to succeed.

imaginecanada.ca | Twitter: @ImagineCanada | Facebook: facebook.com/ImagineCanada

SOURCE: Imagine Canada

Marnie Grona [English media]
Director, Marketing & Communications
[email protected] 
1.800.263.1178 x244 or 416.597.2293 x244

Amanda Mayer [French media]
Imagine Canada - Ottawa
[email protected]
1.800.821.8814 x239 or 613.238.7555 x239