Code of Conduct
Disciplinary Procedure
Ossett Cricket and Athletic Club (OCAC) is committed to providing an environment that is free of discrimination, harassment and intimidation for members, employees and guests.
Members, staff, guests and visitors are all reminded that an acceptable standard of behaviour is expected in all areas of the Club including the grounds. Further, all members, guests and visitors have given their consent to be bound by both the restrictions and penalties which may be imposed for any breach of the club’s standards set out in this Code of Conduct.
Members will be liable for any breach committed whether by themselves or their guests.
Ossett Cricket and Athletic Club has adopted the following Code of Conduct which adheres to the four licensing objectives; Prevention of Crime and Disorder, Public Safety, Prevention of Public Nuisance and Protection of Children from Harm. As members, staff, visitors or guests you are bound by this Code of Conduct.
All players utilising the grounds of the Club are expected to play/behave in the Spirit of the Game which should fall within the boundaries of each section’s own Code of Conduct.
Within the grounds:
The term ‘grounds’ refers to all playing surfaces, the Main Clubhouse and additional buildings which include but is not limited to the Boundary Room, the Queen’s Terrace and any car parking areas.
All sports participants must:
- Adhere to their own Code of Conduct during sporting activities.
- Demonstrate fair play both during and after training and match time.
- Always follow and respect the OCAC Code of Conduct.
- Be aware that the OCAC Code of Conduct will supersede any individual sporting section’s Code of Conduct in the event of a serious incident.
- Show the necessary respect to the grounds, employees and facilities at all times.
In the clubhouse:
Members, guests and visitors are reminded that:
- Any form of discrimination, harassment or intimidation is regarded as unacceptable behaviour.
- Consumption of excessive quantities of alcohol is not permitted by law. Please do not be offended if service is refused.
- The use of foul or abusive language has no place in the clubhouse and any member heard using unacceptable or offensive language will be asked to either stop or leave the premises. Where someone is noticed to be consistently using bad language after being warned then their continued membership will be reviewed accordingly.
- Smoking or the use of e-cigarettes is not permitted within any of the club buildings.
- The taking of illegal substances will incur immediate suspension and loss of membership.
- Consideration for others should be shown when using your mobile phone in the clubhouse.
Whilst fully acknowledging that some adult “banter” contributes to creating a healthy atmosphere amongst members, these rules are designed to safeguard others who find such banter offensive or intimidating. This Code of Conduct is not intended to create a bureaucratic, regulatory environment, but rather to promote and enhance our Club’s values.
A person engaging in any behaviour that may be detrimental to sport or OCAC is in breach of the Code of Conduct and should be reported to Club Management and/or the General Committee.
It is in the best interests of all players, staff and guests that such behaviour is reported, and all players, staff, members and members of the public are encouraged and have a duty to report such behaviour.
Disciplinary Committee
The OCAC General Committee will appoint a Disciplinary Committee to oversee the complaints procedure set out in Section 4 and to conduct investigations, hearings and impose penalties within the guidelines in Section 7 as may be deemed necessary.
The Committee will be made up of:
- The Club Chairperson, The Club Secretary and one other, named as Disciplinary Chairperson.
The Disciplinary Committee will be responsible for implementing this policy in a fair, impartial and timely manner.
Complaints and Protests:
Complaints may be made by any person including a competitor, member, visiting guest, staff and members of the public.
Complaints must be made in the first instance to either the OCAC Management or the Club Chairperson within 5 days of the matter occurring. These must be then followed up in writing in an acceptable timeframe.
Once received the Club Management or Club Chairperson will determine the offence, and grade it in accordance with the Grading of Complaints section below. The OCAC Management or Club Chairperson will then take the following actions;
- If the matter is Grade 1, of a minor nature, the Club Management will discuss the complaint with the person(s) involved and deal with the complaint by either dismissing the complaint or deal with it by way of the first step in Appendix 2 whereupon the matter will be closed;
- If the matter is Grade 1, but the person involved has already had step one of Appendix 2, then the Club Management will discuss the complaint with the person(s) involved and either dismiss the complaint or deal with it by way of the second step in Appendix 2;
- If the matter is a Grade 2 or Grade 3 offence, or involves a Grade 1 suspension or expulsion, the Club Management will carry out a preliminary investigation and gather all the facts of the complaint as is reasonably available within seven days from the receipt of the Complaint notice. This may include speaking to the accused person and getting a written report from that person. The matter will then be referred to the Disciplinary Committee for action.
The Club Management will be responsible for keeping all parties involved informed about the complaints process.
Grading of Complaints
All complaints and charges are to be graded 1 to 3 with 1 being the lightest grading and 3 the most serious. This is done by reference to Appendix 1 and the following notes.
The Club Management and the Club Chairperson are required to determine the grading of the offence. The grading allocated will determine the action to be taken and the potential penalty to be imposed. Therefore, consistency of grading across offences is important and it is a requirement that records are kept supporting the grading process.
On some occasions, the Club Management may not recommend a grading because of the seriousness of an incident and may automatically refer the charge to the Disciplinary Committee.
In any instance of a breach of this Code of Conduct, details, including of those involved will be stored securely by OCAC.
Penalties:
If a complaint is upheld by the Disciplinary Committee, it shall give its decision in writing, within 14 days, with reasons for the decision and any penalty imposed.
It would be expected that the Disciplinary Committee will deal severely with proven cases of serious misconduct and in some cases the conduct may constitute a criminal offence in which case the matter should be referred to the Police.
Disciplinary Committee Functions
The Disciplinary Committee will meet on an as required basis to perform the following functions:
- Review complaints information notices in relation to Grade 1 offences and ensure consistency in application
- Consider all Grade 2 and 3 complaints and appeals to a Grade 1 penalty
- Where necessary, hold investigations, including a hearing into a complaint or appeal
Notice of any hearing of the Disciplinary Committee shall be given, in the case of a complaint, to the person or persons being the subject of the complaint and the complainant; and in the case of an appeal, to the persons affected by the appeal and the appellant. The notice shall be sent via email and/or post.
The notice will specify the date, time and place of any hearing and will be accompanied by copies of all material relevant to the complaint. The notice will also specify if the hearing is to be attended by written submissions or whether the parties are required to attend in person, with the opportunity to have representation attend also. Hearings will be in private with only the accused and their representative and the Disciplinary Committee.
No formal legal representative shall be entitled to attend, provided that the Disciplinary Committee may receive such legal advice as it deems necessary.
Any participant to the hearing will advise if a conflict of interest could be lodged by any party.
Appendix 1
General examples of grading of complaints of conduct likely to bring the OCAC into disrepute (not an exhaustive list)
Grade 1 Offences
- Bad language
- Improper treatment of equipment
- Use of equipment other than within the intentions of its purpose
- Ill-mannered behaviour
- Failure to comply with a sporting sections’ Code of Conduct when representing OCAC or any affiliated sporting section in any sanctioned tournament/interclub match
Grade 2 Offences
- Behaviour bringing the club into disrepute
- Theft of minor items
- Excessive or offensive bad language
- Verbal abuse or threatening behaviour
- Breaking equipment
Grade 3 Offences
- Any serious misuse of alcohol or use of drugs on the grounds or in the club premises
- Serious theft
- Assault of a player, official, member, staff, guest or member of the public
- Sexual or verbal harassment
Appendix 2
Grade 1 Offence
If no previous offences, any one of the following process will be adopted:
- Verbal warning with notice on file;
- Written warning issued to member;
- Penalty of suspension imposed by Disciplinary Committee.
If the next incident is a Grade 2 offence, then that process will override the above.
Grade 2 Offence
If no previous offences, any one of the following process will be adopted depending on the seriousness of the offence:
- Written warning issued to member;
- Penalty of suspension imposed by Disciplinary Committee;
- Penalty of expulsion as determined by the Disciplinary Committee.
If the offence is considered serious, or there are other recent offences, then a step can be passed at the discretion of the Disciplinary Committee.
Grade 3 Offence
Depending on the seriousness of the offence, any one of the following actions may be adopted;
- Written warning issued to member;
- Penalty of suspension imposed by Disciplinary Committee;
- Penalty of expulsion as determined by the Disciplinary Committee
Step 1 will only be taken if the offence is of a lesser scale otherwise a penalty of suspension will usually be imposed.
A clean slate policy will apply to any offence after a twelve-month period from date of last penalty.
