Compass: our live chat support service to guide students through challenges with a human-first approach.
Designed in BC in partnership with educators and mental health professionals to prioritize student safety and well-being.
1.25M
youth in Canada
require mental
health support*
57%
do not get the help they deserve
⬇︎
Compass
Early Intervention
24%
of youth have experienced suicidal thoughts
8%
have planned a suicide attempt
Across schools, crisis needs are rising, yet many students struggle long before reaching a breaking point. Crisis response is essential, but support often arrives too late. Early guidance, preventative wellbeing, and trusted human connection must be part of the solution, especially as school budgets and counsellor capacity remain tight.
Today, many young people turn to AI for support. While convenient, these tools raise serious questions about safety, accountability, and human connection. When it comes to youth mental health, shortcuts are too risky.
Compass changes the equation. By integrating our service into your school website or student platform, students gain immediate, private, confidential, and anonymous access to real human support. Our trained mental health advocates provide meaningful, supervised, one-to-one conversations before challenges escalate into crises. There is no AI, no bots, only human-first support with a friendly-professional approach that complements your existing counselling and wellbeing services.
With Compass, schools provide a trusted, familiar space for students. Your school’s branding, policies, and support pathways are fully integrated, keeping students connected to the staff and resources they already know and trust.
Compass Widget Options
Students can reach Compass instantly via our widget or a direct link. Integration is quick and simple, and every conversation remains private, secure, and confidential. Our widgets are personalizable.
Resources + chat support
During our hours of operation, users can chat with one of our volunteers in addition to accessing resource links.
Resources only
This widget connects youth with your resources or trusted local support resources through useful links. No chat option.
What makes our service safe ✅
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Compass is available only through your school, keeping chats secure and accessible to authorized school communities. Students don’t need to create an account or share personal information, reducing barriers and allowing them to speak freely without fear of repercussions.
Anonymity keeps the focus on wellbeing, fosters trust, and encourages early help-seeking. Compass also manages structured escalation and crisis protocols, collaborating with crisis lines and handling reporting, which reduces the burden on school staff while ensuring students receive safe, timely support.
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Compass operates through a secure web-based chat. We do not use SMS, social media, or third-party messaging platforms that may compromise privacy or data security.
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All conversations are handled by trained human mental health advocates. Compass does not use AI or automated responses, ensuring students receive thoughtful, empathetic, and accountable support.
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Our support team is made up of trained volunteers studying psychology, social work, or related mental health fields, as well as mental health professionals. All volunteers receive ongoing training and supervision. Experienced mental health professionals provide clinical oversight, and licensed clinicians manage escalation and high-risk situations to ensure consistent safety, quality, and appropriate care.
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Compass is not a crisis line but has clear protocols for managing high-risk situations, including self-harm or safety concerns. All high-risk conversations are handled by experienced mental health professionals and overseen by licensed counsellors, following established duty-of-care standards and aligning with provincial legislation and school procedures.
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Compass manages all internal documentation and reporting. Schools are notified only when necessary, such as in situations involving safety, escalation, or mandated reporting.
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Compass is designed to work alongside your school’s counselling and wellbeing services, not replace them. We coordinate pathways to ensure students remain connected to trusted local supports.
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Every conversation is guided by empathy and respect. Students are met where they are, with support adapted to their unique needs, experiences, and concerns.
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When additional support is needed, Compass connects students to appropriate local and community-based resources that are trusted and relevant to their context.
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Student data is protected and never sold or shared. Compass operates in compliance with Canadian privacy legislation, including PIPEDA.
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Compass is developed, owned, and operated in British Columbia. While our technology is proprietary and built in Canada, we use secure cloud infrastructure to ensure reliability, privacy, and compliance with Canadian data protection standards.
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Compass supports students of all genders, sexual orientations, cultural backgrounds, and lived experiences, including LGBTQ+ youth, Indigenous students, Black students, and newcomers, across K–12 and post-secondary settings.
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Compass is delivered by a registered charity. Our decisions are guided by student wellbeing and community impact, not commercial incentives.
Mission statement: at Community is Medicine, our mission is to close the gaps in mental-health care for young people on Vancouver Island and accross Bristish Columbia, ensuring every young person receives the support they need and deserve.
Other services:
❌ Often do not provide one-to-one early support, relying instead on peer community forums or volunteer listener networks, which can introduce risk and inconsistency in support quality. Some may offer professional counselling over the phone, but students may be reluctant or disinterested in that format, limiting its effectiveness.
❌ Are not fully anonymous; students must share identifying information such as name, email, phone number, school, and age, which creates barriers for students seeking immediate, confidential help.
❌ Many are for-profit organizations, which may prioritize growth or revenue over student well-being, whereas Compass is a BC-based charity fully focused on providing safe, supervised, barrier-free mental health support.
❌ Are not local. Many operate internationally, raising questions about data privacy, storage, and compliance with provincial regulations.
❌ Require multiple steps to access support, such as creating an account, downloading an app, providing personal information, or booking a session in advance , all of which increase friction and often lead to students abandoning the conversation.