On behalf of our Board of Directors and staff team, I hope you and your family are staying healthy and safe as we adjust our daily lives to flatten the curve. Sport BC has been working hard to support our member organizations and the sport sector over the past month. In its absence, we are truly learning the power of sport to connect and I know we are all motivated to be ready to return to sport as soon as it is safe to do so. While we do not know what the future holds, we do know working together through Sport BC, we will get through this and be prepared to thrive again through sport. Sport BC will continue to do our best to support our members through this uncertain period and we encourage you to reach out for support as needed.
I would like to take this opportunity to express our thanks to Margo Ross. After over a decade as Sport Branch Executive Director, Margo has changed focus and is now supporting Emergency Management BC. She is working on issues related to food shortages for vulnerable populations during the COVID-19 crisis and we wish her well with this important work. On behalf of Sport BC, I expressed gratitude to Margo for her determined support of the sport sector and her belief in the transforming power of sport. We look forward to working with Amy Schneider the Executive Director for Creative and Sport..
We are pleased to provide this April update and again please do not hesitate to contact anyone at Sport BC for more information on these initiatives or any other matter.
Yours in Sport,
Rob
Online Instruction
Is your sporting organization offering online instruction or online programming? If the answer is yes, please contact Cameron Cheung, General Manager of SBC Insurance, directly at cameron@sbcinsurance.com providing as much detail as possible about the online program. Information the underwriters are looking for include: Schedule (including frequency), types of activities, name of the instructors/coaches, platforms used (ie: social media? zoom?) and the amount participants/members that are involved in each online session.
Cyber Liability Insurance
Moreover, it may be a good time to double check whether your organization has cyber liability insurance. Please contact Cameron to conduct a review of your policy and to explore your options.
COVID-19 KidSport Update
During the COVID-19 pandemic KidSport is and will continue to accept and review applications. However, with the uncertainty around spring/summer leagues and programming, we will not be issuing cheques to sport clubs on behalf of the families until sport resumes.
We do not take this decision lightly, but do so only to reduce the administrative burden (refunds and adjustments) on volunteers across the sport system. As soon as sport resumes, we will forward cheques to sport clubs on the child’s behalf so that they can begin to play. In the meantime, we encourage all British Columbian children to find ways to keep working on your sport skills and physical fitness at home so that you are ready to hit the playing field when sport returns.
| Team KidSport Ambassador Engagement Program Sport has been temporarily paused and KidSport BC knows that thousands of young people across our province will not have the opportunity to play their season of sport this spring. We are excited to be working Team KidSport to help provide some entertaining and healthy activities during the Stay Home mandate. Huge thank you to our inspiring ambassadors willing to virtually engage with our community. #SoALLKidsCanPlay #PoweredBySportBC |
Gender Equity Resources Through ProMOTION Plus, Sport BC continues to share resources encouraging a gender equitable landscape in sport. Be sure to follow @ProMOTION_Plus on Twitter and FaceBook to stay up to date. Congratulations to our friends at Canadian Women & Sport, formerly the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity, on their new name and brand. Canadian Women & Sport are dedicated to creating an equitable and inclusive Canadian sport and physical activity system that empowers girls and women. The organization’s new website is a comprehensive tool for resources at all levels. Be sure to check out womenandsport.ca for webinars, research, manuals on topics such as Coaching and Designing for Girls; Diversity of Girls and Women; Leadership Development; and Best Practices for Organizations. Four BC sport organizations received a 2020 WISE Fund grant of $2500 to advance gender equity in their organization by expanding quality opportunities for girls and women to participate and lead sport. Congratulations to BC Adaptive Snowsports, BC Artistic Swimming, BC Athletics, and BC Wheelchair Sports Association. ProMOTION Plus strives to ensure gender equity is a standard throughout the provincial sport sector and works to ensure girls and women have equal opportunities in physical activity and sport. In partnership with the BC Games Society, a ProMOTION Plus Leadership Award was presented at the Fort St. John 2020 BC Winter Games. The award recognizes, and celebrates, those who have supported girls and/or women in participating more fully in physical activity or sport. Congratulations to this year‘s recipient, Morgan Burdock, a well-known athlete and volunteer in the Fort St. John community. To learn more about Morgan visit the BC Games’ website. COVID-19 Resources During the COVID-19 pandemic Sport BC has been supporting members and the sport sector by providing information and resources. Specific communications have been shared directly to members and the following are high level summaries. Wage Subsidy Guidelines/Updates: Canada’s Parliament passed legislation related to the Federal Emergency Wage Subsidy (“CEWS”) program. A complete overview of how this may assist you or your organization a full breakdown is available on our website. We also advise you to review the program details directly on the government webiste which can be found here :https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/economic-response-plan/wage-subsidy.html Canada Summer Jobs The Canada Summer Jobs program plays a significant role for many sport organizations – information about changes to the programs, including more flexibility, has recently been communicated. Here is the link to the media release that outlines the new details https://pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2020/04/08/changes-canada-summer-jobs-program-help-businesses-and-young Sport BC Communication Sport BC is working to amplify your messages and reach. We are monitoring social media channels and are doing our best to support your communication needs. Do not hesitate to reach out directly with news you would like to circulate, for example on-line training courses, staff changes, meetings, sport news, postings. Please email Communication Manager Allison Mailer directly with your request. Small Business BC: Information is changing quickly and Small Business BC is a great resource to access up to date information.This week Small Business BC announced enhanced support service for businesses and organizations to provide information https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2020JEDC0008-000700. With all of the various initiatives (and near daily changes to them) it is a valuable tool to keep track of the most recent information being shared provincially and nationally. There is a library of their digital meet ups on topics such as human resources, commercial leasing, etc. Here is the website: https://covid.smallbusinessbc.ca/hc/en-us |