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Policies

Mission Statement

To provide an environment of fairness and equality while fostering the competitive spirit of those who choose to play the great game of soccer.

Calgary Northside Soccer (CNS) is a city league indoor and outdoor soccer program. CNS offers this program to youth from 4 to 18 years, following the age guidelines set out by Calgary Minor Soccer Association (CMSA). Outdoor CMSA U10, U12, U14, U16, and U18 age guidelines are followed for both the indoor and outdoor seasons, as they are for the indoor season U6 and U8 developmental teams.

The purpose of CNS is to provide youth between the ages of 6 to 18 of all communities an opportunity to actively participate in the sport of soccer in a safe, fun and learning environment. CNS is dedicated to the development of positive life skills for all involved through the playing of both outdoor and indoor soccer. CNS encourages the development of soccer as a lifetime activity, focusing on the health and wellness of the participants. We aim to provide a soccer program that encourages self-esteem, self-discipline, personal responsibility, teamwork, good sportsmanship, perseverance and physical fitness for all players, coaches, and referees.

The particular focus of programs developed by CNS will be to ensure players experience the following:

  • The fun of playing and learning the game of soccer
  • Competitive play on a local, city, and provincial level
  • Improvement of individual skills and team play
  • Opportunities to meet new people and make new friendships
  • A sense of accomplishment as an individual player and as a teammate.

In addition to the soccer sports program, CNS will also provide opportunities for youth and adults to actively participate as referees, team coaches, and team managers.

The CNS Committee manages our program. The role of the committee is to develop policies, procedures, and to deliver the soccer sports program to the community.

Vision Statement

Calgary Northside Soccer will excel in meeting the needs of soccer players and coaches in our member communities.

Values of Calgary Northside Soccer Club

  • Volunteer Contribution
  • Fair Play and Respect for All
  • Excellence in Player, Coach and Referee Development
  • Organizational Integrity and Accountability
  • Financial Responsibility
  • Teamwork and Friendship
  • Incredible Soccer Experiences
  • A Sense of Community

Guiding Principles

  • The health and safety of all involved will be of prime importance.
  • Positive coaching is important to the general development of youth and to successful play.
  • Good sportsmanship will be modeled by coaches and parents, and taught to players.
  • Placement of players on teams will be based on evaluations that are fair and unbiased.
  • Coaches will promote and nurture individual player development regardless of the players' skill level.
  • Team competitiveness is an important part of the sports program.
  • "Winning" is providing the player with a memorable, positive, and enjoyable soccer experience.

Membership

Membership in CNS will be included with the Seasonal Registration Fee, no Community Association Membership is required. Membership will include one vote per family at the Annual General Meeting or on surveys and plebiscites as required for Membership input on CNS Club decisions from time to time.

Procedures

Registration

For all Registration related policy including Fees, Refunds, Late-Registration and more, visit our Registration Page.

Fees

Fees will be reviewed and set each season by the CNS Committee. Player Fees will reflect costs for providing the soccer program on a not for profit basis. CNS fees cover CMSA's team entry fees, costs of field rental and practice gyms, technical training, field maintenance, equipment and uniforms, coaching workshops and training.

Fees posted via the home page link to the season registration info at the beginning of each season when online registration opens.

Required Equipment

Players must supply their own practice ball, water bottles, shin pads and appropriate shoes for use at games and practices. CNS will supply uniforms for games. Uniforms are not to be used for practices or anything other than games.

Fields

To the best of its ability, CNS will provide quality soccer fields that are of consistent and appropriate size for the age group.

Player Placement on Teams

For any of the age groups, evaluations may be required to determine placement of players on teams within the age group. The attached document provides details of CNS's Player Placement Policy.

Coach Selection

The attached document provides details of CNS's Coach Selection Policy.

Game Officials

Referees will be used to officiate at all games according to CMSA rules. CNS will provide referees for all "home" games played on our community's fields in outdoor. CMSA will provide referees for all games played on City Athletic fields and for all indoor season games U10 and above.

Supervision of Players

CNS has a "No Coaching Alone" Policy which must be observed at all times. If a Coach finds themselves in a situation where all the players have arrived and there is not another Coach present and/or the Coach is unable to obtain the assistance of a parent to stay at the facility, the practice MUST be cancelled. Parents should not be dropping their players off without first confirming there are sufficient adults for the practice to proceed. Further, Coaches should not leave the facility at the end of practice or game if there is a player(s) remaining without their parent(s).

There are to be at least 2 adults, including a coach, in attendance at all practices and games. Practices MUST be cancelled if a coach is alone with a team.

With all mixed gender teams, there must be coaches/parents of both genders present at all games and practices (see CMSA rules).

With all same gender teams there must be at least one coach/parent of the same gender as the players at all games and practices.

Privacy Authorization

The parent and/or guardian consents to the Calgary Northside Soccer collecting, using and disclosing the player(s) registration information for all soccer participation registration requirements. This includes disclosure of player's name, parent's and/or guardian's names and phone numbers, to the coaching staff of the player's team and all participants of the player's team. Note, the Player Information form is forwarded to the player's coaches including any medical information disclosed by the parent/guardian. Players and team officials name and information, such as date of birth, are transferred to CMSA as part of the team registration process.

  1. The use of registered player/parent/guardian personal information for player identification purposes and related soccer activities.
  2. The use of registrant's name and related health information to assist authorized parties responding to emergency situations requiring medical and/or other health situations.
  3. The use of registrant's name and personal contact information for the purpose of recruiting volunteer assistance to support various team/club activities and sanctioned events.
  4. The use of photos/videos provided by CNS members to support educational, newsletter, and website communication purposes.
  5. Does not disclose personal information to any third parties or for any commercial purposes.

On behalf of my child, and myself I consent to allow Calgary Northside Soccer to collect, use and disclose personal information for its operational and administrative purposes as described above.

Liability and Risk Release

The parent and/or guardian of the named player registrant accept the liability and risk associated with soccer as a contact sport and release CNS, its directors, coaches, employees, agents, and volunteers from any claim, demands, damages, actions or causes of action arising out of or in consequence of any loss, injury or damage to the player incurred while participating in any soccer games, practices, tournaments or other events approved by CNS, regardless of whether or not such loss, injury or damage arises by reason of any negligence of CNS, its directors, coaches, employees, agents or volunteers. The parent and/or guardian agrees to indemnify Calgary Northside Soccer, its directors, coaches, employees, agents and volunteers (the “Indemnities”) from any claims or demands which might be made against the Indemnities arising out of loss, injury or damage mentioned above.

Privacy Policy and On-Line Payment

CNS does not store credit card information in our system. The database administrator, however, stores the IP address of the computer from where the registration was submitted. We will provide this information along with the name, address and phone number of the family contact(s) to the appropriate parties in the event of an investigation into fraudulent transactions and as required by law. The credit card information is stored by Beanstream and is available by special request in the event of a dispute or other special circumstances. Please review their privacy policy at http://web.beanstream.com/privacy.asp. Compusim (database service provider for CNS), Telus and their hosting partners, Beanstream, and Global Payments meet the requirements of the PCI Security Standards council for accepting and processing on-line payments (https://www.pcisecuritystandards.org).

Code of Conduct and Ethics

The following has been adapted from the Code of Conduct as developed by the CMSA as code of conduct for CNS. Failure to comply with this code of conduct by coaches, players, or parents is taken seriously and may result in sanctions by Calgary Northside Soccer and/or by CMSA.

For CNS Coaches' Code and Ethics: See our Coaches Page

For CNS Players' Code and Ethics: See our Players Page

For CNS Parents' Code and Ethics: See our Parents Page

CMSA Value and Belief Statement

Leadership - Demonstrate leadership in the sport of soccer and be progressive in our actions

Integrity - Conduct all business in an honest, ethical and trustworthy manner

Fair Play - Adhere to the principles of "Fair Play" both on and off the field.

Excellence - Strive for and support the greatest level of achievement for players, volunteers, members and staff.

Accountability - Committed to fiscal responsibility, accountability, and good business practices in all our actions.

CMSA Abusive and Threatening Behaviour Procedures

CMSA has adopted a behavioural stance against persons who harass, insult, threaten, or assault other persons at a soccer game where a CMSA team is involved. Referees are instructed to immediately dismiss any team official or spectator who is abusing them or is acting in an unacceptable manner, whether it is directed to them or not. If the abuse or behaviour continues in any way, shape, or form during the game, the referee will be instructed to abandon the game, keep both team's ID cards, and CMSA will hand out discipline measures to those who caused the game to be abandoned. Note that the referee no longer has to dismiss the person from the game in order for CMSA to deal with the issue. Any report submitted to CMSA by a game official will be reviewed and acted upon.

For team officials or parents who are identified by the referee or through investigation (a hearing may or may not be called) to have breeched our behaviour rule, the following sanctions will apply:

(1) If the person identified is a team official, that team official (and possibility their child(ren)) will be suspended from ANY AND ALL CMSA activity for the remainder of the season or longer if needed, and will have to put up a behavioural bond before they can start coaching again (and possibly before their child(ren) can play again.)

(2) If the person identified is a parent, the parent (and possibly their child / children) will be suspended from ANY AND ALL CMSA activity for the remainder of the season or longer if needed, and will have to put up a behavioural bond before their child / children can play again.

(3) If a team has a second incident from any of its team officials or spectators in a season, the team may be removed from the schedule for the remainder of the season AND disqualified from all post-season competitions (Provincials, Inter-Cities, Fall Cup, etc.) and from attending any tournaments or traveling.

(4) If CMSA has issues with any particular tier or division, CMSA may cancel post-season play for all teams in that tier or division.

(5) If CMSA has issues with any particular tier or division, CMSA may not schedule referees for that tier or division for the remainder of the season.

Other sanctions, not listed above, may be applied if CMSA deems it is necessary and warranted.

Remember that team officials are responsible for the behaviour and conduct of their players and spectators. Clubs are responsible for the behaviour of their team officials .

Funding

Tournament Funding

Teams that enter tournaments are required to pay for their own expenses.

Provincial and Inter-cities Financial Support

Teams that make Provincial and Inter-City tournaments are required to pay for their own expenses. Please be aware of Provincial and Inter-City dates and withdrawal deadlines. If you are unable to send a team without providing enough notice, CMSA / ASA, may fine our club. The parents on the team are responsible for the fine. Sometimes the fine can be as high as $2500.

Nationals Financial Support

Teams that make Nationals are required to pay for their own expenses.

Fundraising

Individual teams are allowed to fundraise. They are required to inform the CNS committee for club approval (basically to ensure that the fundraising event is appropriate).

Rules and Regulations

Uniform Deposits

This is covered on our registration page.

Equipment Policy (lost or damaged)

For team officials that fail to return equipment or if equipment is unnecessarily abused, the parents of that team will be asked to reimburse CNS.

Player Appeals Process

Appeals Process for Players in the Team Formation Process (the basis for an appeal): If a player feels they have been misrepresented because their soccer skills have changed or a player has consistently played in a higher division than currently assigned, they can file an appeal by writing to the CNS committee. Please see the Appeals Section in the Team Selection Appendix A for more info.

Team Placement in CMSA League Play

CNS committee will estimate where teams are entered based on past seasons and registration numbers.

On Field Injury

If an injured player is female, the assigned Bench Mom or female Team Official must go to the injured player (along with another Team Official if necessary). If any player is injured on the field, he/she should never be moved by an untrained individual. Head or spinal injury can mean permanent damage for that player. Delaying the game is secondary to seeking medical attention. All team officials should have the address of every field and facility with them. Call 911. Have a team official meet the medical response team outside of the playing area and guide the medical team to the field.

Alberta Soccer Association Insurance Coverage

ASA provides coverage that is secondary to your personal coverage and primary for several areas where our members are not protected. Alberta Soccer and all of our Regular Members has extensive coverage in the areas of:

Commercial General Liability (CGL)

The coverage will pay on behalf of named insured (ASA), and the additional insureds, where applicable, all sums of money which the insureds shall become legally obligated to pay as compensatory damages for actual bodily injuries to participants, spectators, and other members of the public. This also includes property damage the insurer(s) shall become legally obligated to pay. The policy does not cover defense of criminal code charges.

Sport Accident Insurance

The Sport Accident Insurance Policy is in place to ensure that you are not out-of-pocket for medical expenses incurred through a soccer injury. These are injuries that result in the following losses within 365 days after the date of accident. Please note these amounts are above what would normally be covered by Alberta Health Care, and Private Health Care Plans. The policy does not cover lost wages from employment. It is important that claims are filed within 60 days of any incident to ensure coverage over the calendar year.

Excess Travel Insurance

This is now mandatory and covers all potential injuries on and off the field while outside of Alberta (no charge) and outside Canada (mandatory at $1.50 / day / person). It is also excess of Alberta Health Care and private health care plans so it very important to ensure all members travelling have their health cards with them. All incidents that occur outside Canada should be reported within 24 hours if medical attention was required and within 30 days of an occurrence. Greater Detail on each policy can be found using this link: ASA Insurance Info.