Part of the Dos and don'ts series – how to keep children and young people safe in sport.
Overnight stays involving children and young people should only occur with your organisation’s approval and consent of parents or carers. Practices and behaviour during an overnight stay must be consistent with the practices and behaviour expected during the delivery of your sport at all other times.
Watch the overnight stays video
Do
- Obtain written consent from a parent or carer and, where appropriate and possible, the child/young person prior to the overnight stay.
- Ensure children and young people are provided with privacy when bathing, toileting and dressing.
- Observe appropriate dress standards when children and young people are present (for example, no exposure to adult nudity).
- Ensure the safety of children and young people is not compromised by inappropriate sleeping arrangements. An adult must not sleep alone in the same room as children or young people unless they are the parent or carer for them, or the adult and young person are peers in a similar age range (for example, teammates who are 17 and 18 years of age).
- Select accommodation appropriate for children/young people where they won’t be be exposed to nudity or pornographic material (for example, through movies or television) or have access to alcohol while staying there.
- Always allow children and young people to contact their parents/carers, or Approved Person. Allow parents/carers to contact their child.
- Make sure there are appropriate levels of supervision. General rule is a minimum of 2 adults with a ratio of 1:8.
- Appoint people with supervision duties who are skilled, capable and informed of their responsibilities.
- Plan appropriate accommodation. If children or young people share a room, they should be the same gender, similar age range and must not
share beds. - Plan for emergencies. If you need to administer first aid, do so only if you are qualified and in the presence of others or in an emergency.
- Ensure that if mixed-gender teams travel, they are always accompanied by a male and female chaperone.
- Keep parents and carers informed and let them know:
- the aim of the trip
- destinations and venues
- competition/event details
- supervision levels
- accommodation details, including rooming configuration
- contact details
- roles and responsibilities of accompanying adults
- estimated time of arrival and departure.
- Keep children and young people informed and let them know:
- what’s expected of them
- roles and responsibilities of adults accompanying them
- their rights
- who to talk to if they have any concerns.
- Avoid being with a child or young person in an isolated or unobserved situation.
- Establish a two-adult leadership model when doing room checks, attending team meetings and/or other activities. This is when two authorised adults are present and observable by others, and environments can be interrupted as needed.
- Have approriate medication plans including prior written consent and dosage instructions from parents/carers
Don't
- Leave children and young people unsupervised.
- Leave children or young people under the supervision or protection of unauthorised persons such as accommodation staff or peers, even if the peer is an adult.
- Share a bed with a child or young person.
- Be alone in a room with a child or young person. If an adult presence is required, there should always be always be two authorised adults present.
- Enter a child or young person’s room or invite them into your room when travelling.
- Do things of a personal nature for children or young people that they can do for themselves.
