For volunteers, coaches and parents in Canadian sport, 2026-27, using the Coaching Association of Canada's Rule of Two. Covers what the rule requires, who counts as a responsible adult, messaging, virtual sessions, travel, exceptions, enforcement and training.
The Coaching Association of Canada (CAC) says the goal of the Rule of Two is to ensure all interactions and communications are open, observable and justifiable. In practice, two responsible adults (a coach, parent or screened volunteer) are present with a participant.
The CAC's practical guidance covers five areas:
The CAC calls it a leading practice for a safe sport environment, and says there may be exceptions in emergency situations.
Sources: https://coach.ca/sport-safety/responsible-coaching-movement/rule-two and https://coach.ca/sites/default/files/documents/2024-07/cac-rcm-rule-of-two-infographic-en.pdf
The CAC names a coach, a parent or a screened volunteer (its Rule of Two page also lists staff). Its infographic shows these set-ups with one participant:
The CAC does not define "screened" on the Rule of Two page. Its Responsible Coaching Movement page describes screening as comprehensive background checks, reference checks, interviews and police information checks done at regular intervals.
Sources: https://coach.ca/sport-safety/responsible-coaching-movement/rule-two, https://coach.ca/sites/default/files/documents/2024-07/cac-rcm-rule-of-two-infographic-en.pdf and https://coach.ca/sport-safety/responsible-coaching-movement
The CAC's guidance is that a coach should have another coach or a screened adult (a parent or volunteer) present when interacting with participants. So a session with a single coach should have a second screened adult added, such as a parent or screened volunteer, and the training environment should stay open to the public and observable. The CAC also advises being considerate of the participants' gender when selecting coaches or volunteers. The only exception it mentions is emergency situations.
Source: https://coach.ca/sport-safety/responsible-coaching-movement/rule-two
The CAC says to plan transportation so that two adults are present when travelling with a participant or participants, and to follow your club's travel policy. Its Rule of Two page does not give separate guidance on overnight trips.
Source: https://coach.ca/sport-safety/responsible-coaching-movement/rule-two
In addition to the usual guidelines, the CAC says virtual sessions should include:
Source: https://coach.ca/sport-safety/responsible-coaching-movement/rule-two
The CAC says "there may be exceptions in emergency situations". It gives no further detail on what counts as an emergency or what to do in one.
Source: https://coach.ca/sport-safety/responsible-coaching-movement/rule-two
The CAC describes no enforcement mechanism of its own. It states that each sport organization determines how the Rule of Two is enforced. The CAC presents the rule as "a leading practice to ensure a safe sport environment for all", and organizations that take the Responsible Coaching Movement pledge commit to implementing it.
Source: https://coach.ca/sport-safety/responsible-coaching-movement/rule-two
Yes. The CAC offers a free eLearning module, Understanding the Rule of Two, on its online learning platform, the Locker.
The Rule of Two is one of three pillars of the Coaching Association of Canada's (CAC) Responsible Coaching Movement:
Organizations can take the Responsible Coaching Movement pledge, which commits them to implementing the Rule of Two, background screening and ethics training, and agrees to be listed on coach.ca as having taken it.
Sources: https://coach.ca/sport-safety/responsible-coaching-movement and https://coach.ca/sport-safety/responsible-coaching-movement/take-rcm-pledge