Rowan House Society is a 3-star charity with an above average results reporting grade of B+. For every dollar donated, 70 cents are available to go towards the cause. Its reserve funds can cover just over 11 months of annual program costs.

Founded in 2003, Rowan House Society (Rowan House) runs programs to break the cycle of domestic violence in High River, Alberta. Rowan House runs six key programs: Emergency Shelter, 24-Hour Support Line, Children Programs, Preventative Education, Outreach, Legal Resource Navigator, and Safe at Home. In fiscal 2024 (year ended March), the charity spent $2.1m on its programs. Rowan House did not provide a program spending breakdown. Although the F2025 financial statements were available at the time of this update, Rowan House Society uses line-item costing, meaning it does not disclose which expenses relate to programming, administrative, and fundraising activities. Ci had to use the charity’s T3010 filings with the CRA to determine this information. At the time of this report, the F2025 filings were not yet available. The financial information on this profile is based on the F2024 information and the results are on the F2025 annual report.

Most of the charity’s program spending was on its Emergency Shelter. Rowan House Society operates a 30-day short-term emergency shelter for women, with or without children, experiencing domestic violence and abuse. The shelter has seven bedrooms with the capacity to support 24 individuals. In F2025, the shelter supported 221 individuals; 47% were children and 52% were women. The average length of stay was 19 days.

Rowan House Society’s 24-Hour Support Line offers phone and text support to anyone affected by domestic violence and abuse. In F2025, Rowan House had 2,108 calls or texts and provided 13,810 minutes of support.

Rowan House’s Children Programs provide a safe, nurturing space for children to relax. In F2025, Rowan House had 25 parenting groups and served 209 children.

Preventative Education aims at educating the public in order to break the cycle of domestic violence and abuse early. In F2025, 3,789 students attended 151 school presentations, and 212 participants attended 14 public presentations.

The Outreach program offers up to six months of client led, individualized support. In F2025, Rowan House reports that its Outreach program had an average stay of 130 days and it served 132 clients and 178 children.

Rowan House’s Legal Resource Navigator program provides information and guidance to help clients with legal processes. In F2025, Rowan House Society assisted with 54 court orders and served 85 clients.

Safe at Home is an alternative approach to supporting families. The program includes education, case planning, and goal setting. In F2025, the charity provided 54 group sessions and 118 individual sessions to 27 clients.

Rowan House Society’s audited financial statements use line-item costing, meaning it does not disclose which expenses relate to programming, administrative, and fundraising activities. Ci had to use the charity’s T3010 filings with the CRA to determine this information. This is not a best practice. At the time of this update, the F2025 filings were not yet available. The following analysis is based on the F2024 financial statements.

In F2024, Rowan House received $905k in donations and special events revenue. It also received $1.7m in government funding, representing 62% of total revenues. Administrative costs are 6% of total revenues (less investment income) and fundraising costs are 24% of total donations. For every dollar donated, 70 cents are available to go towards the cause. This is within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending. In F2024, Rowan House spent $2.1m on its programs which represents 76% of total revenues.

In F2024, Rowan House Society had $1.9m in its reserve funds. This is enough to cover just over 11 months of annual program costs.

This profile has been sent to Rowan House Society for review. Changes may be forthcoming.

Profile updated on August 13, 2025 by Abby Stout.