Safe Sport


INTRODUCING CBSA’S COMMITMENTS TO A SAFE AND INCLUSIVE SPORTS ENVIRONMENT FOR ALL

CBSA’s vision is that Canadians who are blind will lead the world in Goalball and will enjoy full inclusion in all aspects of Canadian Sport for Life. As an expert in blindness, CBSA advocates within the sport system for Canadians who are blind, deafblind, and partially sighted. With our members we believe that all of our decisions should reflect the fact that athletes are the reason the organization exists. We believe that coaches should be provided with the appropriate education and resources to enable them to lead in the development of high-performance athletes. WE also value, respect, trust and care about our volunteers and staff who are trained and always conduct themselves professionally, ethically and with integrity.

CBSA and its members are committed to protecting the health, safety and physical and mental well-being of every individual that is involved in the Canadian Goalball and blind sport community. The Organization and its Members take any situation involving misconduct or maltreatment very seriously. For this reason, the Organization and its Members are collectively committed to enacting and enforcing strong, clear, and effective policies and processes for preventing and addressing all forms of misconduct or maltreatment.

Should any individuals including staff, Board members, Athletes, coaches, officials, volunteers, parents of Athletes, and spectators wish to report any instance of misconduct or maltreatment, the organization has established Safe, secure and confidential avenues for all participants to be as comfortable as possible should they wish to enquire about, or make, such a report.

We have tried to make access easy for everyone by placing all Safe Sport information in one place. This page includes:

Reporting a Complaint

CBSA has appointed independent safe sport officers who any person within the CBSA sports system, at any level can contact to report any incidents of abuse or harassment of any kind. These officers are available to communicate in English or French. In addition, officers identifying as male, or female are always available based on the preference of the complainant. They may be reached directly and independently through the email address safesport_wwdrs@primus.ca. This is a confidential email address which will only be accessed by one of the independent Safe Sport Officers.

Reports should be made within fourteen days of an incident, however all incidents of concern occurring within the CBSA community from any time frame should be brought to the independent third party for review and follow up.

Reporting Abuse or Harassment is often a difficult process. To this end, a person can expect the following when contacting an independent safe sport officer:

  • All reports will be kept entirely confidential, in line with the wishes of the person making the complaint. This includes confidentiality from CBSA staff.
  • Complaints will be followed up on in a timely manner.
  • The independent Safe Sport Officers are available to support persons making a complaint through the process and will provide advice and guidance on steps as, and if, a complaint proceeds.
  • Your complaint will be taken seriously, and rigorously examined.
  • Complaints will be managed in the language, and by an officer of the gender identity of your choice.

Note, should any complaint come to the attention of any CBSA staff, it will be forwarded to one of its Safe Sport Officers for review.

Safe Sport Hotline

In addition, an independent helpline has been set up with the support of Sport Canada and the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada.
Anyone with a concern, who is not comfortable reaching out to one of the appointed independent Safe Sport Officers, may reach out to this free and confidential service. Information on their services and how to contact them can be found at abuse-free-sport.ca. The abuse free sport phone and texting line is accessible at 1-888-83-SPORT and is monitored from 8 am to 8 pm Eastern time.

Our Safe Sport Policy Suite

To further ensure the protection of all participants across the CBSA sports system, CBSA has developed the following Safe Sport Policy suite. This suite is applicable to the organization and any of its participating member organizations. CBSA encourages all participants across its sports eco-system to become familiar with these policies as they are key resources in guiding the organization and informing participants on how to thrive and stay safe while participating in CBSA’s activities.

Download the full CBSA Safe Sport Policy Suite (.doc)

Visit the Policy page and view the individual sections online or as separate policy downloads.

Concussion Awareness

As part of its commitment to ensuring the safety of all of its members in all blind sports, the organization and its participating members recognize the increased awareness of concussions and their long-term effects. WE believe that prevention of concussions is paramount to protecting the health and safety of all individuals. For this reason, the organization has put together the following resources, which provide additional information and considerations for when an individual with a visual impairment sustains a concussion. They are designed to be used alongside general concussion protocols from Parachute, Canada’s national charity dedicated to injury prevention, as well as the Concussion Awareness Training Tool (CATT) , an online educational concussion resource page. The resources are meant to be used as reference by healthcare professionals wanting more information on concussion management in individuals who are blind or visually impaired, or parents of children who are blind or visually impaired. They provide extra information to possible modifications and accommodations to concussion management. For further information about these resources, please email concussion@canadianblindsports.ca.

Training

In order for participants to understand their rights and obligations with respect to ensuring a safe, inclusive, and healthy sport environment, CBSA has instituted training requirements for three categories of individuals.

The Organization requires mandatory training on preventing and addressing harassment and abuse for the following categories of Participants:
a. Category 1 – Participants in decision-making positions at the Organization:
i. Senior staff
ii. High Performance Directors
iii. Case Managers / Adjudicators / Investigators
iv. Board of Directors

i. National Team Program Athletes
ii. Junior National Team Athletes
iii. Parents of underage National/Junior National Team Athletes
iv. High Performance Staff
v. Training Centre Staff
vi. Organization-Appointed Coach Developers
vii. Integrated Support Personnel: Mental, Strength and Conditioning, Nutrition, etc.
viii. Coaches: Paid, Unpaid
ix. Sport Assistants, guides, interpreters, etc.
x. Contractors (with direct Athlete contact)
xi. Officials

i. Organizing Committees
ii. Admin/Finance Committees
iii. Governance Committees/Judicial Boards
iv. Board of Directors (when the Board is a governance Board)
v. Event volunteers
vi. Office Staff

The organization requires
CAC Safe Sport Training for all of these categories of individuals to be taken.

Categories of Participants must take the training at the following times:
a. Category 1 – the earlier of:
i. Within 12 weeks of starting date; or
ii. Prior to their first formal activity in their season, or any unsupervised contact with an Athlete
b. Category 2 – Prior to their first formal activity in their season, or prior to any unsupervised contact with an Athlete
c. Category 3 – the earlier of:
i. Within 12 weeks of starting date; or
ii. Prior to their first formal activity and/or event

In addition, each Category of participant must take any other safe sport training as prescribed by the organization. CBSA will annually ensure that Participants have received up-to-date training. When its training program has been substantially updated to include new information or resources, or if the Participant’s certification has expired, the Participant will be required to re-take the training. Note that while the CAC Safe Sport Training is offered on-line, a stand alone, accessible, Word version is available by contacting the CBSA Executive Director at ED@Canadianblindsports.ca

CBSA and its participating members believe these resources will ensure all participants will have the ability to enjoy a safe and inclusive sports experience. We have put together these resources as a comprehensive package to inform and keep all participants safe and updated. If you have any questions about CBSA and our commitments to safety and inclusion, please do not hesitate to reach out to the CBSA Executive Director at ED@Canadianblindsports.ca