The Alberta Gymnastics Federation (AGF) is committed to promoting and maintaining a safe, healthy, and inclusive sporting environment where all AGF members can participate in activities that are free from abuse, maltreatment, harassment, and discrimination. If you have a concern or have seen an AGF member breach AGF’s Policies, including but not limited to our Safe Sport Policy, please take the most appropriate action from the list below to report this concern or violation.
A reporting person who files an AGF Code of Conduct Violation form must do so with no malice and/or information known to be false, fabricated or retaliatory in nature. Reporters must have reasonable grounds for believing the information disclosed does indeed indicate a violation. Knowingly submitting a false or malicious report will be viewed as a major infraction.
There will be no retaliation of good faith reports that turn out to be unsubstantiated. No reporting person shall suffer retaliation or harassment as a result of their report.
In instances where the alleged misconduct is less severe, and/or may not give rise to a risk to the safety, health or well-being of an athlete or member, AGF strongly encourages all members (athletes, coaches, parents, club administrators, judges, volunteers etc.) to first try and respectfully address the issue with the person directly.
If the first response approach listed above is unsuccessful, individuals with concerns should contact their club’s President or a member of its Board of Directors. If the club does not have a Board of Directors, individuals with concerns should contact the owner(s) of the club. If you are unsure how to proceed at the club level, please refer to your club’s Policies and Procedures or speak with your club’s leadership (President, head coach, club owner(s), or Board members) for more instructions.
Complaints with respect to breaches or alleged breaches of AGF’s Policies are to be submitted to the Independent Third Party. AGF‘s Independent Third Party is:
W&W Dispute Resolution Services Inc. [email protected]
Complaints must be submitted in writing by using the Complaint Form by a Complainant with actual knowledge of the events being complained or the individual acting on behalf of a minor. Additional attachments, if any, should be filed at the same time as the complaint. Complaints shall include all relevant detail such as the name of the Respondent(s), details of the incident(s) (including dates, times, and places), reference to the AGF Policies the Complainant alleges have been breached, and names and contact details (if available) of relevant witnesses.
Anonymous complaints are strongly discouraged and may be dismissed by the Independent Third Party. Anonymous complaints will only be accepted by the Independent Third Party in its sole discretion, having regard to the seriousness of the breaches alleged in the complaint and where the complaint discloses sufficient information to reasonably permit the Case Manager to undertake next steps pursuant to this Policy.
Under Provincial Legislation, if you have reasonable grounds to suspect that an individual is or may be suffering from emotional abuse, physical abuse, and/or sexual abuse, you should immediately report the suspicion and the information on which it is based to the local child protection agency and/or the local police department. In Alberta, call the Child Abuse hotline 1-800-387-KIDS (5437).
For general inquiries related to AGF’s Policies and Procedures, please email [email protected]