Operations Manual

• Reduce social isolation
• Improve emotional wellbeing
• Provide culturally safe support
• Promote early help-seeking
• Strengthen peer connection
• Support newcomers, youth, BIPOC communities, LGBTQIA2S+ communities, parents, and other groups
• Create referral pathways to therapy, crisis support, settlement services, and community resources
• Build a scalable community wellness model across Canada

• Newcomer & Immigration Support
• Women's Healing Spaces
• Men's Mental Wellness
• BIPOC Healing Spaces
• Indigenous Wellness
• Youth & Young Adult Circles
• LGBTQIA2S+ Support
• Mindfulness & Meditation
• Arts, Expression & Healing
• Postpartum & Parenting Support
• Trauma & Grief Support
• Faith & Spiritual Wellness

• Newcomer Wellness Circle
• Newcomer Women's Support Circle
• South Asian Women's Healing Space
• Black Men's Mental Wellness Circle
• Mindful Mondays for BIPOC Community
• BIPOC Healing Space
• Queer & Questioning Youth Group
• Youth Expression & Healing Arts
• Postpartum Support Circle

Eligibility depends on the circle. Common eligibility criteria include age group, community identity, language, location or province, support needs, safety suitability, and consent agreement.

Participants must:

• Register through the client app
• Complete basic safety screening
• Accept community guidelines
• Agree not to record or share session content
• Respect confidentiality

1. 1Participant selects a circle in app.calmshell.ca.
2. 2Participant reviews circle details.
3. 3Participant completes safety and suitability questions.
4. 4Participant accepts community guidelines.
5. 5Registration is submitted.
6. 6System confirms registration or sends to approval queue.
7. 7Participant receives confirmation and reminders.
8. 8Facilitator sees registration in Calmshell Pro.
9. 9Admin can monitor registrations in Admin Portal.

• Are you joining this circle for yourself?
• Are you currently in immediate danger or crisis?
• Are you having thoughts of harming yourself or someone else?
• Do you understand this circle is not emergency care?
• Do you agree to respect confidentiality?
• Do you agree to participate respectfully?
• Do you need accessibility support?
• Do you need language support?

Participants must agree to:

• Respect confidentiality
• Speak from personal experience
• Avoid hate speech, harassment, threats, or discrimination
• Avoid recording or screenshotting sessions
• Avoid sharing another participant's story outside the circle
• Allow others time to speak
• Follow facilitator instructions
• Avoid graphic details that may overwhelm others
• Use respectful language
• Understand that the circle is not emergency care

Recommended duration: 75–90 minutes.

After each session, facilitators must complete:

Incidents must be reported when there is:

• Participant in crisis
• Threat of self-harm or harm to others
• Harassment
• Hate speech
• Discrimination
• Bullying
• Medical emergency
• Privacy breach
• Unauthorized recording
• Safeguarding concern
• Technology failure affecting safety

Incident workflow:

1. 1Facilitator flags incident in Calmshell Pro.
2. 2Clinical Supervisor receives alert.
3. 3Coordinator supports follow-up.
4. 4Director reviews serious incidents.
5. 5Resolution is documented.
6. 6Incident is closed or escalated.

If a participant appears at immediate risk:

1. 1Stay calm.
2. 2Keep participant engaged if possible.
3. 3Notify co-facilitator.
4. 4Use emergency contact if policy allows.
5. 5Contact emergency services if imminent danger exists.
6. 6Document the incident.
7. 7Notify Clinical Supervisor.
8. 8Complete post-incident review.

Participants may be referred to:

• Psychologist
• Psychotherapist
• Psychiatrist
• Social Worker
• Peer Support Worker
• Settlement Worker
• Youth Worker
• Crisis Support
• Family Doctor
• Community Agency
• Emergency Department

Referral triggers:

1. 1Participant requests support
2. 2Repeated distress
3. 3Safety concern
4. 4Housing or settlement stress
5. 5Domestic violence concern
6. 6Youth safeguarding issue
7. 7Grief or trauma needing individual support

The Admin Portal should monitor:

• Attendance rates
• Participant satisfaction
• Completion rates
• No-show patterns
• Incident frequency
• Facilitator report completion
• Resource use
• Referral outcomes
• Circle demand
• Participant feedback

Quality review should occur:

1. 1Weekly during launch
2. 2Monthly after stabilization
3. 3Quarterly for board or funder reporting

Before launching a circle:

• Circle name approved
• Purpose written
• Eligibility defined
• Facilitator assigned
• Co-facilitator assigned
• Schedule confirmed
• Capacity set
• Safety screening enabled
• Community guidelines attached
• Resources uploaded
• Crisis support link active
• Registration tested
• Reminder notifications tested
• Attendance form tested
• Session report form tested
• Incident reporting tested

• 1 Director of Community Wellness
• 1 Community Programs Manager
• 1 Clinical Supervisor
• 1 Community Circle Coordinator
• 4–8 Circle Facilitators
• 4–8 Peer Facilitators
• 1 Technical Support Contact
• 1 Admin Support Person

• Number of active circles
• Number of registered participants
• Average attendance
• No-show rate
• Participant satisfaction
• Number of follow-up requests
• Number of referrals
• Number of incidents
• Resource downloads
• Retention across sessions
• Diversity of communities served

A session may be cancelled if:

• Facilitator is unavailable
• Safety issue arises
• Technical failure occurs
• Severe weather affects in-person session
• Minimum attendance is not met
• Cultural protocol requires postponement

Participants should receive:

1. 1Cancellation notice
2. 2Reason where appropriate
3. 3New date if available
4. 4Alternative resources

If a circle reaches capacity:

• New participants join waitlist
• Admin or facilitator reviews openings
• Priority may be given based on need, program eligibility, or referral source
• Waitlisted users receive notice when space opens

Calmshell should provide, where possible:

• Captions
• Language support
• Accessible documents
• Screen-reader friendly pages
• Flexible participation options
• Camera-optional attendance where safe
• Private name display options
• Accommodation request form

Each culturally specific circle must be led or advised by people with appropriate lived, professional, or community credibility.

Cultural safety requirements:

• Avoid tokenism
• Avoid cultural appropriation
• Use proper language
• Respect community protocols
• Involve community leadership
• Allow community-specific facilitation methods
• Protect sacred or sensitive knowledge

Reports should be aggregated and de-identified unless operational follow-up requires individual details.

Monthly report should include:

• Circles delivered
• Participants served
• Attendance
• Referrals
• Satisfaction
• Key themes
• Incidents
• Lessons learned
• Recommendations

1. 1Log into Calmshell Pro.
2. 2Open assigned circle.
3. 3Review registered participants.
4. 4Check safety flags.
5. 5Review session plan.
6. 6Confirm co-facilitator.
7. 7Test video/audio.
8. 8Open session room.
9. 9Admit participants.
10. 10Begin with welcome and guidelines.

1. 1Welcome participants.
2. 2Review confidentiality.
3. 3Complete grounding.
4. 4Facilitate check-in.
5. 5Guide main topic.
6. 6Monitor emotional safety.
7. 7Share resources.
8. 8Close respectfully.
9. 9Remind participants to complete reflection.

1. 1End virtual room.
2. 2Debrief with co-facilitator.
3. 3Mark attendance.
4. 4Complete session report.
5. 5Flag concerns.
6. 6Submit referrals.
7. 7Upload resources.
8. 8Send follow-up message if needed.
9. 9Notify supervisor of serious concerns.

Each circle page should include:

Build and activate:

• Client circle browsing
• Circle registration
• Safety screening
• Community guidelines agreement
• Session reminders
• Facilitator attendance tracking
• Session reports
• Incident reporting
• Referral requests
• Monthly reporting dashboard

The Calmshell Community Healing Circles program should operate as a structured, safe, culturally responsive community wellness system. The client app provides access and participation. Calmshell Pro supports facilitators. The Admin Portal provides governance, safety, reporting, and program control.

The program should begin with a small number of well-supported circles, strong facilitation, clear safety procedures, and consistent evaluation before expanding nationally.