Fresh Start Addiction Treatment Program

Fresh Start Recovery Achieves Accreditation With Exemplary Status

In November of 2025, Fresh Start Recovery achieved a significant milestone as an organization, with Accreditation Canada awarding Fresh Start as Accredited with Exemplary Standing, the highest level of recognition possible under the Qmentum Global accreditation program.

The following are some of the highlights from the Accreditation Canada report:

Since its last Accreditation Canada survey in 2021, Fresh Start Recovery Centre has demonstrated notable progress in organizational maturity, program integration, and quality system alignment. Across its Calgary and Lethbridge operations, Fresh Start has strengthened its governance framework, unified program delivery, and embedded a culture of continuous improvement grounded in its enduring values of gratitude, generosity, and community.

Housing and outreach programs have evolved into vital components of Fresh Start’s integrated care continuum. Housing is recognized as an extension of treatment – safe, structured, and abstinence-based – anchoring recovery in stability and reconnection. Outreach and alumni initiatives ensure that clients receive follow-up support after discharge, including case management, relapse prevention, and community integration.

What most distinguishes Fresh Start’s evolution since 2021 is the extent to which its three guiding principles: gratitude, generosity, and community, have become operationalized across the organization.

Gratitude is evident in the reflective culture of learning and appreciation for both small and large milestones. Generosity manifests through the dedication of staff, alumni, and donors who contribute time, resources and advocacy. Community is visible in every aspect of the continuum, from shared meals and peer mentorship to collaborative partnerships with Alberta Health Services, the Calgary Homeless Foundation, and Indigenous communities across Treaty 7 Territory.

In summary, Fresh Start Recovery Centre has demonstrated significant progress since its previous accreditation cycle. It has transitioned from growth to governance maturity, from program development to system alignment, and from operational independence to integrated community connection. The organization now stands as a cohesive, quality-driven, and values-led model of recovery care – grounded in gratitude for those it serves, sustained by the generosity of its people, and strengthened through the enduring power of community.

We at Fresh Start are extremely grateful to have received this external, third-party acknowledgement of our hard work and commitment to continuous improvement.

Between October 23, 2025 and February 17, 2026, we have achieved the following:  

• 104 people in Phase 1 (pre-treatment) at Fresh Start’s 2 locations in Calgary and Lethbridge.

• 140 people actively participated in the intensive 90-day Phase 2 recovery program.

• 66 people participated in Phase 3 of our program. Phase 3 is a 100-day transitional phase that builds on the work done in the initial 90-day program.

• 59 people participated in Phase 4, which includes living in transitional housing units or returning to community with continued access to Outreach support and involvement with Fresh Start Alumni.   

• 76 people participated in Phase 5, living in Fresh Start’s recovery-oriented housing.    

• Note that the Phase 3, 4 and 5 numbers include clients living in community, in the main Fresh Start treatment facilities or in our recovery-oriented housing.