• Atlantic Bears Football Club Code of Conduct.
  

ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB , all children have the right to a safe and respectful environment that is free from child sexual abuse and/or inappropriate conduct. Any abusive or unlawful act committed by an employee/volunteer will not be tolerated and will be reported to child welfare and/or law enforcement as applicable. Any employee/volunteer engaging in such acts will be subject to a range of disciplinary procedures, up to and including dismissal Similarly, employees/volunteers who are aware of breaches of the Code of Conduct to Protect Children, but fail to take appropriate action, may be subject to discipline.

ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB is committed to:
• Ensuring that prompt action is taken in regard to disclosures, allegations or suspicions of child abuse (and reporting to a child welfare and/or law enforcement agency and/or parents as required by law and as deemed necessary for the protection of children).
• Ensuring we create an environment that encourages disclosures, allegations or suspicions to be reported.
• Treating all disclosures, allegations or suspicions as confidential.

PURPOSE
Under Canadian child welfare laws, if you know or suspect child maltreatment, you have a legal obligation to report it. This is known as the “duty to report”. Every person in Canada has the duty to report known or suspected child maltreatment by law.

WHY IS THIS POLICY IMPORTANT?
Organizations must have internal reporting procedures regarding the following types of incidents:

Child Maltreatment:
• As outlined above, Canadian child welfare laws set out the duty to report and require all people to report suspicions based on reasonable grounds that a child is/or has been sexually abused; and/or disclosure of child sexual abuse.

PARAMETERS
This policy applies to all employees/volunteers of ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB including full-time, part-time, contract, temporary, or casual employees.

Employees/volunteers are required to immediately report all disclosures, allegations, suspicions, or indicators of child abuse, regardless of source or content.

Employees/volunteers are required to promptly report the following matters under this policy:

1. Reports of Unlawful Behavior from a Child Involving an Employee/Volunteer of Quiet ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB or a Third Party. All disclosures, allegations or suspicions of unlawful behavior towards a child reported to an employee by a child regarding either:
a) another employee/volunteer of ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB or
b) someone other than an employee/volunteer of ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB e.g. parent).
2. Unlawful Behavior Witnessed by a ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB Employee/Volunteer. Any incident of alleged unlawful behaviour, either:
a) witnessed by an employee/volunteer regarding another employee/volunteer of QUIET ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB or
b) witnessed by an employee/volunteer regarding someone other than QUIET ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB employee/volunteer (e.g. parent).

3. Reports of Unlawful Behavior from a Third Party Involving an Employee/Volunteer of
ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB or a Third Party. Any alleged unlawful behavior, either:
a) reported to an employee by a third party and regarding another employee/volunteer of
ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB or
b) reported to an employee by a third party regarding someone other than a QUIET ATLANTIC BEARS FOOTBALL CLUB employee/volunteer (e.g. parent).

The above reporting obligations apply whether the child involved is a participant in a program of our organization or not. NOTE: If you do not know the identity of the child, take steps to find out who the child is– depending on the situation, steps may need to be taken to protect that child from additional harm, the child may need to make a statement to police, etc.

REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
An employee/volunteer has an independent legal obligation to report unlawful behavior to child welfare and/or law enforcement.

Under this policy, an employee/volunteer is also required to report unlawful behavior to his/her supervisor/administrator/president, who is then obligated to report it to the relevant Provincial and Federal authorities.

PROCEDURE
Employees/volunteers:

1. If a child is the one conveying the information:
a) Treat the disclosure/allegation seriously and reassure the child.
b) Document the disclosure/allegation on an Incident Report Form. Available on our website under About Us – Policies and Procedures – Forms

2. If you witness something:
a) Do what you can to stop or interrupt the behavior or situation causing the concern, to the extent you are able to do so without unreasonably jeopardizing your safety or the safety of the child involved. The steps you may be able to take will vary depending upon the situation and the safety concerns that may be applicable.
b) If you do not know the child or adult involved, take reasonable steps to identify the party you do not know and/or to note any identifiable features that may help to identify him/her.
c) Document what you have seen and what you may have done to intervene on the
Incident Report Form, including whatever information you may have about the identity of the child or adult involved.

3. If the information is being conveyed through another source (third party, another employee, another volunteer):
a) Treat the information received seriously.
b) Document the information received from the reporting person, and any other information you have received on Incident Report Form.
4. Notify your supervisor/administrator/president and report the matter to child welfare and/or law enforcement. A phone call to child welfare can be made by you on your own, or together with your supervisor/administrator/president.

Remember: the legal duty to report lies with the individual who witnessed the incident or received the disclosure, allegation or other concern. Notifying your supervisor/ administrator/president is for purposes of this policy only. It does not absolve an employee/volunteer of the legal obligation to report to CFS.

5. Documentation:
a) Supervisor/administrator/president – document discussion with employee/volunteer on
Incident Report Form.
b) Supervisor/administrator/president and employee/volunteer – document discussion with CFS on Incident Report Form.

6. The Supervisor/administrator/president must report the disclosure, allegation or other concern above to the relevant Provincial and Federal Authorities and the individual receiving the information must report it to the relevant Provincial and Federal Authorities.

7. All employees/volunteers receiving the disclosure, allegation or other concern must keep the information confidential and in accordance with the confidentiality obligations set out at the end of this policy, and the obligations under the Policy on Communications with
Employees About Unlawful Behavior.

8. Leave the investigation up to the authorities mandated with this responsibility (child welfare and law enforcement). Do not investigate disclosures, allegations or other concerns, and do not discuss them with others except as required to report the information or participate in a related investigation.

9. The Club Liaison for Commit to Kids is tasked with:
a) Consulting with legal counsel and/or an HR professional.
b) Following steps in the Suspension/Dismissal: Potential Unlawful Behavior policy.
c) Documenting the outcome on Incident Report Form.

OTHER MATTERS OF NOTE

Interference with the Conduct of an Investigation
A threat or promise made to discourage a disclosure, the filing of an allegation or the reporting
of a concern, or any interference with the conduct of an investigation, including an attempt to have a disclosure, allegation or other concern withdrawn, is strictly prohibited and will result in disciplinary action.

Rule of Two Policy

When a Atlantic Bears Football Club Coach, Volunteer Coach, Assistant Coach or Manager is in a

potentially vulnerable situation with any child (example – locker room or meeting room), another

Atlantic Bears Football Club Coach, Volunteer Coach, Assistant Coach, Manager or the parent/

guardian of the player(s) must be present.

In any one-on-one situation with any Atlantic Bears Football Club child, there must be a Coach,

Assistant Coach or Manager of the same gender present, or the player’s parent/guardian must

be present.

Note – This includes electronic devices such as SMS messaging and private chat

applications.

PURPOSE

Ultimately, the Rule of Two states that there will always be two screened and NCCP trained or

certified coaches with an athlete, especially a minor athlete, when in a potentially vulnerable

situation. This means that any one– on–one interaction between a coach and an athlete must

take place within earshot and view of the second coach, with the exception of medical

emergencies.

WHY IS THIS POLICY IMPORTANT

The Rule of Two serves to protect minor athletes in potentially vulnerable situations by ensuring

that more than one adult is present. Vulnerable situations can include closed doors meetings,

travel, and training environments.

PROCEDURE

In the event where screened and NCCP trained or certified coaches are not available, a

screened volunteer, parent, or adult can be recruited. In all instances, one coach/volunteer

must reflect the genders of the athletes participating or be of an appropriate identity in relation

to the athlete(s).

The following sequential list depicts the “staircase approach” to the Rule of Two. While the

Gold Standard is the preferred environment, it is not expected that it will be reached at all

times. The alternatives presented, although increasing risk, are acceptable and would be

considered to be in alignment with the Rule of Two. The one–on–one interaction between a

coach and an athlete without another individual present, as depicted at the lowest rank in the

sequential list, is to be avoided in all circumstances.

1. Two certified coaches
2. One trained coach & one screened adult
3. One coach & two athletes
4. One coach & one player (Not to happen)

Atlantic Bears Football Club Policies & Procedures

Confidentiality

All disclosures, allegations and other concerns will be handled in confidence. We will not disclose the identity of any parties involved, or the circumstances of the disclosure, allegation or concern, except where necessary for the purpose of investigative or corrective action, where required by law, or for the protection of individuals. Similarly, employees/volunteers interviewed as part of an investigation or follow-up under this policy shall treat all information in a confidential manner. An employee/volunteer who breaches confidentiality may be subject to discipline.

A copy of the documented incident shall be placed in the accused employee/volunteer’s human resource file. Any identifying information about the child victim or reporting person shall be removed from this copy. A generic letter shall also be placed in the file that indicates the alleged offense, how it was handled and any follow-up that was completed.

Link to the Canadian Sport Helpline for confidential reporting.
info@abuse-free-sport.ca
1-888-837-7678

Further Information sven@bearsfc.com Sven Arnason 902-717-4917S