Photo courtesy of: Five Counties Children's Centre
Five Counties Children’s Centre set new records for the number of children served and client visits during the past year, according to figures released at the organization’s annual meeting Monday.
The children’s treatment centre, which supports families in Northumberland County, Peterborough, Haliburton County and the City of Kawartha Lakes, served 6,574 clients in 2025-26 and recorded more than 56,600 client visits — both the highest totals in its history.
CEO Scott Pepin said the numbers reflect the dedication of staff and the growing demand for services across the region.
Despite an 11.8 per cent increase in referrals, the centre said it was able to largely stabilize its wait list. However, 2,204 children were still waiting for treatment services as of March 31.
The organization also highlighted the opening of its accessible outdoor treatment and recreation space in Cobourg, continued efforts to reduce wait times through fundraising and clinician recruitment, and the launch of a new autism treatment pathway.
The annual meeting also featured a keynote address from Paralympic gold medallist Jon Thurston and recognized community partners and volunteers for their contributions to inclusion and accessibility programs across the region.
The meeting also awarded the High Five Community Awards of 2026.
The winners are Yoga Studio owner Angela Demeester, Ashley Higgins of the victoria graduate program, Cindy Marshall of the Northumberland EarlyOn centre, Jennifer Hardy-Parr a grand writer with the county of Northumberland, Sean Griffin of P.L.A.Y. Sports Peterborough, and both Sara Pot and Sam Miscinszki of CanChild.
(Written by: Branden Rushton)
