TFSC Code of Conduct
Thornhill Figure Skating Club has developed the following Code of Conduct to ensure that all skaters participating on our sessions experience a respectful, safe, enjoyable, and positive learning environment. We ask that parents/guardians review the rules with their skater. Any skater, parent, or guardian found to be in violation of the Code of Conduct may be asked to leave the ice and/or building at the discretion of the coaches, office staff, and/or board members. Repeated violations may result in further disciplinary action, up to and including termination of you/your skater's TFSC membership. Refunds or credits will not be given for termination of a skater's TFSC membership.
Skaters enrolled in our Talent ID and above programs are considered part of our Sr. Division.
● As a Skate Canada sanctioned club, all skaters, parents, coaches, volunteers, office staff, and board members are responsible for familiarizing themselves and following Skate Canada's Code of Ethics. The most up to date copy can be found HERE.
● Only Skate Canada certified coaches are to be teaching skaters. Parents are prohibited from coaching rink-side or the bleachers.
● All Ticket Ice users (coaches and skaters) must be a member in good standing with Skate Canada. Any TFSC coach, volunteer, office staff, and/or board member is permitted to request proof of registration with Skate Canada.
● TFSC will not tolerate any form of harassment, bullying, intimidation, or generally disrespectful behaviour towards skaters, coaches, volunteers, office staff, and/or board members.
● For our Sr. Division and Ticket Ice skaters, they are expected to observe “Right of Way” guidelines. Priority is as follows:
Skater who's music is being played
Skater in a harness lesson
Skater in a lesson
Skater working on their own
● Courtesy and good sportsmanship to coaches and fellow skaters is expected at all times. If you get in another skater's way, please be polite and apologize. The skater who has the right of way may respectfully remind others of their presence, i.e. “excuse me” or “coming through”.
● Skaters are expected to dress appropriately for their sessions, as follows:
For our Sr. Division skaters:
Lace-up figure skates
Skating pants/leggings OR Skating skirt/dress with tights
Fitted t-shirt or long sleeve shirt
Fitted zip-up sweater (no hoodies)
Long hair should be tied back and out of the skater's face
No baggy or bulky clothing so coaches can see the skater's body positions
No bare midriffs.
For our Pre-CanSkate & CanSkate skaters:
Hockey or figure skates. Lace-up skates are recommended.
A CSA approved hockey helmet for skaters working on up to and including Stage 5. Bike, ski, or multi-purpose helmets are not permitted. A helmet is optional for skaters in Stage 6, but it is highly recommended.
Long pants/snow pants. Bare legs are not permitted.
Warm jacket/long sleeves. Bare arms are not permitted.
Gloves/mittens; hockey gloves are allowed.
● Skaters are allowed a maximum of 2 run-throughs of their solo per session to make ice and music usage fair.
● Absolutely no kicking of the boards or the ice. Swearing or excessive yelling will not be tolerated.
● Rink-side doors should remain closed whilst sessions are running. Skaters need to ask their coach to leave the ice if they need to come off the ice during their session for any reason. Skaters should not be coming off and on the ice repeatedly as this is a waste of valuable ice time and is distracting to other skaters/coaches.
● Parents and other skaters should be respectful of a coach and skater's time and not interrupt a coach while a lesson is in progress.
● Look in the direction of travel when skating backwards.
● Spins should be performed at the center of the ice surface, jumps at the ends and in the corners.
● When standing at the boards or getting on the ice, before joining the flow of skaters, check to ensure you will not be cutting off another skater or coach.
● Refrain from standing around and socializing on the ice. This is a waste of valuable ice time and presents a hazard for skaters who are practicing.
● Do not sit or lie down on the ice. If you fall, get up immediately.
● If a skater is injured, seek the assistance of a coach immediately. Do not try to move them.
● All beverages must be in a closed container. Skaters will not eat food or chew gum while on the ice surface.
● Wearing of headsets on the ice is prohibited at all times.
● Be respectful to arena staff and property at all times.
● The use/possession of drugs, cigarettes, or alcohol will not be tolerated.
● When your session is over, gather your belongings and clear the ice immediately.
● Skaters should use the dressing room designated at all times for putting and taking off skates or for storage of items during sessions.
● Coaches are not permitted to teach in the middle of the ice if the session is very busy.
● For safety reasons, during Ticket Ice, Talent ID or STAR 1 skaters must be taught by the boards and must be in a lesson the entire time they are on the ice.
The goal is to create a positive and hardworking training environment for all athletes. Respect to all coaches, skaters, volunteers, office staff, and board members is demanded.
Learn-To-Skate Policies
REGISTRATION INFORMATION
All spots are first-come, first-serve. Skaters must be registered online via Amilia to skate, there will be no walk-ins accepted. If you are not registered, you will not be allowed to skate. No exceptions.
If a program is full, you may add your skater(s) to the waitlist. If a spot becomes available, skaters will be contacted by the office. The spot will be held for the first skater for 24 hours. After this 24 hours, the spot will be offered to the next skater on the waitlist and so on.
CANCELLED SESSIONS AND SEVERE WEATHER
TFSC reserves the right to change the schedule without notice.
TFSC also reserves the right to cancel sessions due to low enrollment. If this is the case, you will receive an email and be credited for the session less any classes that have run.
TFSC will only cancel sessions due to severe weather conditions if the City of Markham and/or Vaughan close community centres. If this is the case, TFSC will announce the closure on their website and an email will be sent out to registered participants via Amelia.
Credits/refunds will not be given due to severe weather unless the City of Markham and/or Vaughan has closed the building.
REFUNDS AND SESSION TRANSFERS
There are no refunds or credits after the registration has been processed with the exception of injury or severe illness. To request a refund or credit due to injury or severe illness, you must provide the office with a medical note. This medical note must include the date(s) your skater was injured/ill along with a brief description. All refunds and credits will be less the number of sessions that have run, less the non-refundable Skate Canada membership fee, and less an administrative fee. Credits are subject to a $30 administrative fee. Refunds are subject to a $50 administrative fee. Credits are non-refundable or cashable.
Skaters may request to transfer sessions. Requests should be submitted to the office and can only be granted if a skater qualifies for that session and if there is space. All session transfers will incur an administrative fee of $30 per child, per transfer.
PRO-RATING & MAKE UP CLASS POLICY
Pro-rating will not be available until 4 weeks after the session begins. Please contact the office for assistance with pro-rated registration at thornhillfsc@gmail.com.
There are absolutely no make-up classes for any missed sessions.
GENERAL WAIVERS
The applicant agrees that the Thornhill Figure Skating Club and/or it's proprietors will not be held responsible for any accidents or losses, however caused and agrees to release the proprietors from all claims or damages which may arise as a result of or by means of such accident or loss.
Photo Waiver: The applicant grants TFSC the right for display or promotional purposes, the use of any photographs or videos taken of applicant & waives/releases and claim related to such use.
Policies - Talent ID and Above
REGISTRATION INFORMATION
All spots are first-come, first-serve.
Skaters must be registered online via Amilia to skate. There will be no walk-ins accepted. If you are not registered, you will not be allowed to skate. No exceptions.
If a program is full, you may add your skater(s) to the waiting list. If a spot becomes available, skaters will be contacted by the office in the order in which they were added to the waitlist. The spot will be held for the first skater for 24 hours. After this 24 hours, the spot will be offered to the next skater on the waitlist and so on.
REGISTRATION FOR SESSIONS AND SKILL LEVEL
Registrations will be processed on a first-come, first-serve basis. You agree to register your skater for the minimum number of sessions according to their 'Skill Level'. The Skill Level is dictated by your base coach and can be found in your Amilia account by clicking on "My Account", then "Members", and scrolling down to "Skills". If you feel the skill level on your account is incorrect, please have your base coach contact the office. Requests for skill level changes from parents cannot be honoured. Failure to register for the minimum number of sessions will result in the cancellation of registration and/or additional fees.
Minimum Registration Requirements
Talent ID = Min. 2 days mandatory
STAR 1-2 = Min. 2 sessions per week
Star-3 General = Minimum 2 sessions per week
Star 3 Pre-Competitive = Minimum 3 sessions per week
STAR 4-10 = Min. 3 sessions per week
Pre-Juvenile & Juvenile = Min. 4 sessions per week
Pre-Novice & Elite = Min. 5 sessions per week
There will be no skating up/down. For any assistance with skating up/down, please contact the TFSC Co-Directors, Katerina Papafotiou & Jonathan Mills at TFSCCoDirectors@gmail.com
CANCELLED SESSIONS AND SEVERE WEATHER
TFSC reserves the right to change the schedule without notice.
TFSC reserves the right to cancel sessions due to low enrollment. If this is the case, you will receive an email and be credited for the session less any classes that have run.
TFSC will only cancel sessions due to severe weather conditions if the City of Markham and/or Vaughan close the buildings where the sessions are to take place. If this is the case TFSC will announce the closure on their website and an email will be sent out to registered participants via Amilia. When there are severe weather conditions and the City of Markham and/or Vaughan has not closed the buildings, please contact your coach to ensure they will be at the rink. It is not the responsibility of TFSC to ensure your coach will be present during a session. Skaters are not permitted on the ice without a TFSC coach present.
Credits/refunds will not be given due to severe weather unless the City of Markham and/or Vaughan has closed the building.
REFUNDS AND SESSION TRANSFERS
There are no refunds or credits after the registration has been processed with the exception of injury or severe illness. To request a refund or credit due to injury or severe illness you must provide the office with a medical note. This medical note must include the date(s) your skater was/is injured/ill along with a brief description. All refunds and credits will be less the number of sessions that have run, less the non-refundable Skate Canada membership fee, and less an administrative fee. Credits are subject to a $30 administrative fee. Refunds are subject to a $50 administrative fee. Credits are non-refundable.
Skaters may request to transfer sessions. Requests should be submitted to the office and can only be granted if a skater qualifies for that session and if there is room on the session. All session transfers will incur an administrative fee of $30 per child, per transfer.
PRO-RATING, MAKE UP CLASSES & GUEST SKATING
Pro-rating will not be available until 4 weeks after a season begins. Please contact the office for assistance with pro-rated registration at thornhillfsc@gmail.com
There are absolutely no make-up classes for any missed sessions. No exceptions. Skaters skating on sessions for which they are not registered will be charged a $40 penalty in addition to their regular session fees. Skaters skating on sessions for which they do not qualify and do not have permission to skate on will be asked to leave. Repeated offenses will result in the termination of your TFSC membership and skating privileges. Refunds/credits will not be given for the termination of TFSC membership.
Skaters who wish to skate on an additional session for which there is room and they qualify for may do so by paying a $30 guest skating fee. This fee must be paid before the skater skates and must be arranged with the office via email at thornhillfsc@gmail.com.
VOLUNTEER FEE
To help keep costs down, we will enlist the help of our parents throughout the year to donate their time or donate goods once per family to help with special events. Upon completion of your volunteer time/donation of goods, the Volunteer Fee will be credited to your Amilia account to be used towards future skating. The Volunteer Fee is non-refundable. Families with multiple skaters are only required to volunteer once and the full volunteer fee paid for all skaters will be credited.
Please keep an eye on your email for volunteer opportunities. Please note that Program Assistant hours and/or judging for the Home Club competition are not eligible for volunteer requirements.
Program Assistants and Volunteering
SENIOR DIVISION - VOLUNTEER FEE
To help keep costs down, we will enlist the help of our parents throughout the year to donate their time or donate goods once per family to help with special events. Upon completion of your volunteer time/donation of goods, the Volunteer Fee will be credited to your Amilia account to be used towards future skating. The Volunteer Fee is non-refundable. Families with multiple skaters are only required to volunteer once and the full volunteer fee paid for all skaters will be credited.
Please keep an eye on your email for volunteer opportunities. Please note that Program Assistant hours and/or judging for the Home Club competition are not eligible for volunteer requirements.
LEARN-TO-SKATE - PROGRAM ASSISTANTS
Skaters aged 11 and over are eligible to volunteer during CanSkate sessions. You must also be at Star 3 level or above. Skaters have the option of having a $5 credit per session volunteered, given at the end of each season (Fall, Winter, Spring, & Summer), to be used towards next season’s fees (on ice and off ice fees only, no coaching fees). Skaters also have the option of using these hours towards their high school volunteer requirements, but not both. These hours are not eligible for any monetary value. Skaters younger than 11 may request to volunteer, but will be approved on a case-by-case basis.
For more information, please contact us at thornhillcanskate@gmail.com