Roller derby leagues (should) have handbooks detailing how the league operates, and while these often have a few statements related to officials, they're necessarily going to be focused on skater-related issues and how the league runs as a whole. They might say how the head ref is chosen, discuss whether officials pay dues or not, and what benefits volunteers get, but otherwise they're typically silent on many official-specific topics (how rosters are built for games, how often officials are expected to attend practice, what a person has to do to be a member of the crew, how officials are expected to behave during practice and game, etc.).
So, as an officials crew, it can be useful to have your own manual detailing how your crew operates (I call this document an "officials handbook", but others call it a "code of conduct" or "officials manual"). Having policies and procedures spelled out ahead of time is a tremendous aid when trouble or drama comes knocking, and it also makes sure all of your crew members know what is expected of them.
Here at South Coast Roller Derby, I discovered that while the league had an excellent league handbook, the officials crew had nothing. So, over the first few months of this season, the crew, board of directors, and I created the South Coast Roller Derby Officials Handbook.
Many crews seem to keep their Officials Handbook confidential, or at the very least don't distribute it openly. I want to do the opposite: my crew's Officials Handbook tells the world what kind of crew we are, and how we operate. I want everyone to be able to read it, especially guest officials and potential new recruits (so they can know what they're getting into).
To save everyone else the trouble of having to start from scratch, I've Creative Commons licensed this document (under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License), so it's entirely editable and shareable.
