Central West/O.P.S.L. accepts its responsibility to provide a safe environment for the children, parents, volunteers and staff involved in our programs. 

Due to the positions of trust inherent in the provision of active, high quality sport activities, volunteers and employees shall be required  to undergo a screening process based on the duties assigned by the Club. 

All volunteers/employees will be required to participate in an orientation that will introduce their duty assignments as well as Central West / O.P.S.A. policies and expectations.

Definition of Risk:

The first principle of screening is risk management, which simply means "What could go wrong here" and "How do we avoid it?" Risk management involves looking at the possibilities of loss or injury that might arise in programs, activities and services and taking steps to stop, minimize, prevent or eliminate them all together. This includes the Club's obligation to take all reasonable measures to care for and protect their participants from harm. The need to screen an applicant is dictated by the nature of the position and its inherent level of risk. When determining risk consider such factors as the participant, the environment, the nature of the activity, the level of supervision and the nature of the relationship.

For example, a high risk position is defined as a position in which staff members, volunteers, or Board members are in direct contact with, or provide direct service to, vulnerable individuals, and in particular when the applicant will be in a position of trust, power or influence and whose contact is unsupervised and/or takes place off site.

The various levels of play in the sport have been ranked according to the level of risk associated with that position and the appropriate screening measures have been assigned to each level of risk.

High Risk Positions: 

Rep, Select or All Star team officials are considered high risk. They may attend games or tournaments that are off-site and unsupervised. They may participate in fundraising activities and/or social events.

Screening measures:

• Coaching application & references
• References checked out
• Interview and orientation session
• Police records search
• Evaluation by the Central West / Ontario Provincial Soccer Association

Medium Risk Positions: 

Recreational Team Officials of teams U16-U19 (less parental supervision at this age and players driving or coming to games with friends).

Screening measures:

• Coaching applications & references
• References checked out
• Orientation session
• Police records search

Low Risk Positions: 

Recreational Team Officials. Central West / O.P.S.A.  Staff is present at fields where games are played. Games and practices are in public with many adults present. Parents supervise their children.

Screening measures:

• Coaching applications & references
• Orientation session

Responsibility of Parents: 

Central West /O.P.S.A. endeavors to provide a safe and secure environment for children at all times. One of our goals is to educate all coaches and parents and to identify and eliminate risks. 

Do not allow your child to attend "private" practices for one-to-one training. All practices should be team practices.

Don't ask the coach to pick your child up or drive them home. Do you know if they have a valid driver's license, drive safely or have "road rage"?

Don't be hesitant to speak up or to inform the Central West / O.P.S.A. Staff if you experience anything that contravenes the Club policy or that you feel endangers the players:

• Speak to the Central West / O.P.S.A. Staff member on site at games
• Phone the club office
• Email the club    info@centralwestindoor.com

Boundaries and Limitations of Coaches, Team or Staff:

1. Shall never be alone with a player
2. Shall not be responsible for transportation to/from practices/games/tournaments
3. Shall not be responsible for water or snacks
4. Shall be a role model - no drugs/alcohol/smoking or abusive language at practices/games/tournaments
5. Shall comply with the Dress Code as defined by the Club
6. Shall adhere to Central West / Ontario Provincial Soccer Association policies
7. Shall embrace Club values, principles, and policies
8. Shall demonstrate the ability to set and maintain standards for players (i.e. respect, self-discipline, fair play)

Confidentiality of Personal Information:

Central West / O.P.S.A.  provides the names and phone numbers of players to the coaches so that the parents can be called to inform them of times and locations of games and practices. Coaches do not have access to any other information on the player's application, such as addresses. Mail outs may be done by the club at times to inform players and parents of registration days, club news or other soccer related activities.

Parents are encouraged to support Central West / O.P.S.A. sponsors. However, the sponsors are not provided with names, addresses or phone numbers of players.