Canadian Accreditation Council

Assist programs in organizations to becoming better service providers by supporting opportunities to learn and adapt;

Enhance service delivery through an increased focus on structure, internal processes, outcome measurements and quality assurance;

Provide programs a strong foundation to build upon; and

Provide organizations with both professional and public recognition of their achievements.

CAC has a twenty-year history of accrediting programs and supporting organizations through the accreditation process.

CAC is committed to providing accreditation service at a reasonable cost. We believe our rates are comparable to other accrediting bodies.

CAC accreditation applies to programs, not organizations as a whole, and is granted for four years. Other accrediting bodies require accreditation every threee years. This has budgeting implications.

Support, in the form of CORE Support and Training Modules are available throughout the process prior to, during, and after the on-site review. The CORE Support Coordinator is available, at no additional charge throughout the process to address questions and concerns that arise around the application of the standards, the preparation for accreditation and to ensure consistency across reviews. In a recent evaluation of CAC, agencies named this support as one of CAC's greatest strengths. Additional support is available through training modules.

As the standards continue to evolve, so does the process of accrediting programs. Our approach is to enter into a partnership with the organization and work together to develop and enhance the structures and internal process to provide quality programming.

CAC has established partnerships with First Nations people from across Alberta to develop standards specifically designed to address the needs of First Nations children and families.

Program staff have opportunity to be trained as peer reviewers and participate in reviews of other organization's programs. Peer reviewers attain a deeper understanding of the standards and the process; different service delivery systems; and re-affirm the positive practices that are currently happening in their own program(s). Having staff knowledgeable about the standards and accreditation.