Counselling and Treatment Services
Support for Children, Youth & Families
At Keystone, children and families are at the centre of everything we do. We know every family is different, so we work with you to create a care plan that fits your needs and goals. We are committed to making our services easy to access and to remove barriers that might get in the way.
Our team of caring and trained counsellors is here to listen, support, and guide you. We understand many types of mental health challenges, and we help children, youth, and families build the skills and confidence they need to get through difficult situations.
Together, we will create a plan that focuses on your strengths and helps you grow. Counselling can be in-person, online, or a mix of both—whatever works best for your family.
We are your partners every step of the way. With care, respect, and professionalism, we will walk beside you through the challenges and celebrate the wins.
At Keystone, we understand that life can feel overwhelming at times—for children, youth, and families alike. Our Counselling and Treatment Services are here to help when challenges start to feel too big to handle alone.
We begin with a comprehensive assessment to get to know you and your family—your story, your strengths, and what you’d like to see change. From there, we build a plan together that’s flexible, supportive, and designed around your needs.
All of our services are provided by registered social workers trained in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. We believe that relationships are at the heart of recovery—helping parents and caregivers understand what’s happening beneath the surface and supporting children and youth as they learn to cope, connect, and grow.
What Counselling and Treatment Includes
- Individual Psychotherapy (Counselling): A safe, one-on-one space for children and youth to talk, explore feelings, and build skills for managing life’s challenges.
- Family Therapy: Sessions that bring parents, caregivers, and youth together to strengthen communication, problem-solving, and connection at home.
- Treatment Planning: We set goals together so that services stay personal, practical, and focused on what matters most to you.
Who Can Access Counselling and Treatment?
These services are for children and youth up to age 17 who need more ongoing support for emotional, behavioural, or mental health challenges. Families can reach out directly or be referred through a school, doctor, or community partner.
Why It Matters
Sometimes life’s challenges take more than a quick check-in to work through. Counselling and treatment give children, youth, and families the time and support to heal, build new skills, and grow stronger together. Our goal is simple—to help every young person feel safe, capable, and ready to thrive.
Our agency offers Brief Services, funded by the Ministry of Health, to support children, youth, and families who are looking for quick access to mental health support. These services are designed to be short-term, flexible, and focused on immediate needs.
What Brief Services Includes
- One Stop Talk (OST): A province-wide entry point where children and youth can connect with a counsellor for a single-session, same–day service. This helps ensure that support is available right when it’s needed.
- Initial Assessment: A first conversation with a counsellor to better understand your needs, provide immediate strategies, and identify what type of support may be most helpful.
- Brief Consultation: Short-term, goal-focused sessions where our team works with children, youth, and families to address specific challenges, provide practical strategies, and connect you to additional resources if needed.
Who Can Access Brief Services?
Brief Services are available to children and youth up to age 17 (and their caregivers) who are looking for support with emotional, social, or behavioural challenges. No referral is needed—families can reach out directly.
Why Brief Services?
Not every child or youth requires long-term therapy. Sometimes, a focused conversation, practical strategies, and a check-in are exactly what’s needed to move forward. Brief Services ensure that support is timely, accessible, and tailored to your situation.
Crisis support remains a vital part of our response to children, youth, and families in distress.
Coming soon: Keystone’s new Urgent Access Program will enhance this service by providing even faster, same-day access to clinicians when a situation can’t wait. This program will bridge immediate crisis support with short-term stabilization and follow-up care, ensuring families get the right help, right when they need it most.
Keystone offers access to specialized consultations and assessments to help better understand a child or youth’s mental health needs and guide the most effective treatment approach. These specialized services are provided through licensed professionals who work with Keystone on a consultation basis.
These assessments are available only to children and youth who are active clients of Keystone’s counselling or intensive service programs. They are considered when a young person is experiencing complex or ongoing mental health challenges, when there are questions about diagnosis or medication, treatment approach or when additional insight is needed to help guide treatment planning.
When a need for assessment is identified, the child or youth’s clinician will present the case to Keystone’s clinical team, who review the information and determine whether a specialized consultation is appropriate. This process ensures that decisions are thoughtful, consistent, and based on clinical need.
If approved, the psychologist or psychiatrist meets with the child or youth (and family, where appropriate) to complete the assessment. The resulting recommendations become part of the overall treatment plan, ensuring care remains coordinated, evidence-based, and focused on helping each young person reach their goals.
How to Access This Service:
If you think your child or youth might benefit from a psychological or psychiatric assessment, please speak with your Keystone psychotherapist. They can help determine whether this service may be a helpful next step and explain the process in more detail.