A place of welcome, safety, and support for refugees.

Established in 1989, Christie Refugee Welcome Centre is dedicated to serving refugee claimant families. We are located at Bloor and Christie in downtown Toronto serving and advocating for refugee families by providing safe, temporary housing, initial settlement services and follow-up support. We own and operate 3 buildings with 30 private rooms and 76 beds and deliver 6 main services: 

• Shelter: private sleeping rooms for families, meals, clothing and personal care products
• Settlement: ensure refugee documents are completed, arrange legal support and representation for refugee hearings, offer orientations to life in Canada, find permanent housing, and provide after-school children’s literacy, fitness and music programs
• Post-Shelter: support and advocate for families during their first years in Canada after they move out of the shelter into local communities
• Employment: provide full spectrum of supports to help find appropriate employment
• Centre for Refugee Children: focused on supporting unaccompanied and separated children and other vulnerable refugee and migrant children in Ontario
• Onsite health clinic: staffed by doctors and nurse/practitioners to provide vital medical examinations and vaccinations

In 2023, 167 refugees stayed in our shelter an average of 5 months. Sixty-four percent were female and 44% of our residents were under 18 years old. The most common family composition is a single mother with one child followed by a single mother with two children. Last year we had 39 single mother households in living in our shelter and 11 babies were born in shelter (a new record!). Overall, our residents came from 24 different source countries with Kenya, Colombia, Mexico, and Nigeria the top four.

Our post-shelter program served over 300 clients and permanent housing was secured for 65 families. Our employment program helped 30 clients find meaningful employment in their field of choice and the Centre for Refugee Children served over 100 children.