Policies & Procedures
Our terms are designed to protect both us and you, our valued members. Please read them carefully to ensure you understand them. By using our services, you agree to our terms and conditions which are stated at the point of purchase as as follows.
" I agree with and will follow my role in the policies and procedures available to me on the North Cornwall Dance and Fitness website when I or someone I am responsible for is participating in activities lead by the club; to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all members. I understand I am responsible to ensure that the club is made aware of any wishes I have to withdraw from consent to be photographed or filmed for promotional purposes, up until I raise this with a member of staff I am consenting to allow appropriate photos and videos to be taken by ticking these terms and conditions. I am also aware that it is my responsibility to inform the club about any allergies or medical restrictions that may effect participation or be useful in case of an accident or emergency."
Issue and review
The date of issue of this policy is October 2023 and it can be viewed on the North Cornwall Dance and Fitness website. This policy will be reviewed annually.
Introduction statement and purpose.
North Cornwall Dance and Fitness (hereafter referred to as The Club, We, Our, Us) is committed to preventing and responding to risk and/or harm and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults (also referred to as Our Students, Members Of The Club) whilst creating opportunities for students to participate in a spectrum of dance and fitness activities. Their safety and wellbeing is of the utmost importance to Us.
The Club has a moral and legal responsibility to provide a fun, friendly and safe environment for all those participating in these activities. Working in partnership with Our Students and their support network (additionally referred to as You or parent/guardian/carer) is essential in promoting and embedding this policy. The protection of all Our Students is everyone's responsibility, You are encouraged to raise any concerns for a Member Of The Club’s safety and wellbeing with instructor Holly Tomlin at The Club or the local safeguarding board which can be found at https://ciossafeguarding.org.uk/ . More details can be found below under the safeguarding procedures subheading.
It is through the application of this policy and Our procedures that The Club will develop a positive and proactive safeguarding framework to enable all Students to participate in enjoyable and safe dance and fitness practice. This equally applies to the safety and security of those working with and responsible for the activities involving all Members Of The Club.
safeguarding procedures
All staff, volunteers and parents/guardians/carers are directed to follow the protocol below to comply with best practices for the safeguarding of all club Members.
If You or We have a concern for a Student or staff member’s safety and wellbeing, You or We should take clear and concise notes as soon as possible about what you have witnesses, heard or suspect. These notes should include the date, time and location, as well as anything said as close to word-for-word as possible. If you are informed about an incident or situation by a person at risk, you should respond calmly, supportively and tell them that they have done the right thing by telling you. Do not ask leading questions or put pressure on the vulnerable person to tell you details they aren’t willing to. It is important to make them feel safe and understood. Do not make false promises to a person at risk, pass on your reported details immediately to the safeguarding lead Holly Tomlin who can be reached on northcornwalldanceandfitness@outlook.com or 07397153455. Alternatively, you can contact the local safeguarding board which can be found at https://ciossafeguarding.org.uk/
If the situation is an emergency then the emergency services should be called on 999 and details passed on to them.
Parents/guardians/carers will be required to tick a terms and conditions form to confirm they have understood their responsibilities set out in this policy when purchasing a class or membership.
​
Child protection policy
We understand our responsibility to act in the safeguarding of Our Students during the time they are under Our supervision as defined in the Children Act 2004, the Education Act 2002 and the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006.
The Club’s Child Protection Policy is to follow good practice guidelines. These guidelines cover physical injury, sexual abuse, emotional abuse and staff are made aware of their responsibilities which include but are not limited to:
-
Avoiding unnecessary physical contact and/or private or unobserved situations.
-
Fostering an environment in which children feel able to articulate their feelings in an atmosphere of acceptance and trust.
-
Give enthusiastic and constructive feedback rather than negative criticism.
-
Not condoning bullying or harassment of any kind.
-
Not allowing the use of inappropriate language and/or behaviour.
-
Forbidding smoking/vaping, drinking alcohol or taking illegal drugs on the premises.
-
Not taking or possessing images or videos of Our Students where permission has not been given.
-
Not taking or possessing explicit or inappropriate images or videos of Our Students at all.
-
Not transporting a Student to and from an event or activity unless pre-planned or in an emergency and with parent/guardians/carers knowledge.
-
Not changing clothes in a public area or entering a room where children may be changing their clothes.
-
Dance activities often involve physical contact between participants and between staff and participants. Physical contact will only be made when it is necessary in relation to the arts activity and with the agreement of the Members involved.
-
Sharing information about child protection and good practice with children, parents and carers, staff and volunteers.
-
Sharing information about concerns with agencies who need to know, and involving parents/ guardians/ carers and children appropriately.
-
Carefully following the procedures for recruitment and selection of staff and volunteers, obtaining DBS checks and conducting thorough interviews with integrity.
-
Taking all reasonable steps to prevent any staff member, volunteer or member of the public from putting any child or vulnerable adult in a situation in which there is an unreasonable risk to their health, safety and wellbeing, no matter if this presents physically, emotionally or sexually.
-
Students, staff and volunteers should only be called or contacted in relation to The Club’s activities or safeguarding policies and procedures.
-
Keeping emergency contact details readily available at all times to the instructor in charge of each activity.
-
Reviewing our policy and good practice regularly.
A terms and conditions disclaimer is available for all parents/guardians/carers at the time of purchasing a class, to give their permission for photographs and/or video recordings to be taken from time to time by Our staff or appointed professionals for promotional material for The Club and Our social media. If any parents/guardians/carers objects to this, it is their responsibility to ensure that The Club is made aware.
Health and safety (first aid & fire)
The Club will comply with the requirements of the Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981.
All activities organised by The Club are subject to risk assessments. Appropriate steps are taken to minimise any risks identified.
We aim to keep the activity environment clean, tidy and free from hazards. Our staff and volunteers endeavour to conduct dance classes in a safe and proper manner, encouraging good warm-up and cool-down practices.
If a participant arrives at a session with a known injury the teacher shall take this into consideration within the class. If a participant sustains an injury during a session, this will be recorded in the company's accident book and treatment given if appropriate. In the event of a serious incident, the parent/carer will be contacted immediately and the emergency services too if required.
A first aid box is located at the relevant premises and checked on a monthly basis and where necessary the contents replenished. The minimum legal provision of a suitably stocked first aid box will always be met. Parents/guardians/carers are responsible for informing The Club’s staff of any medication, plaster, or sun-cream allergies.
A member of staff or a volunteer at hand will be trained in emergency paediatric first aid and first aid at work for the safety and wellbeing of all Members due to the nature of dance as a sport.
Fire risk assessments have been completed for the premises which gives details of the controls in place in order to minimise risk to life in the event of a fire. All staff and volunteers are instructed on the action to be taken and emergency evacuation procedure in the event of a fire or other emergency.
Administering medication policy
Any medication left with staff for administering during Our supervision of a Student should be clearly labelled, in its original packaging and contain information about dosage. Each administration will be recorded and the child will be monitored regularly.
Parents/guardians/carers are responsible for informing The Club’s staff of any other relevant information in relation to this medication.
Missing child and uncollected child policy
In the event that a child is not collected by an authorised adult at the end of a session, We put into practice these procedures. This ensures the child is cared for safely by an experienced and qualified person who is known to the child, in order to cause as little distress as possible.
If contact from the relevant parent/guardian/carer is not received within 5 minutes of the class finishing then they will be contacted by a staff member. Late collection of a child by over 15 minutes will result in a late collection fee of £10 per half hour, starting from the time the class ended.
Where a parent/guardian/carer is not reachable at all within 30 minutes of the class ending, the local social service or emergency services will be contacted and informed. If the club is closed for the day after said class please note We may no longer be able to supervise the child on the agreed premises and they will likely be supervised elsewhere.
On occasions when You or the persons normally authorised to collect your child are not able to collect the child, You MUST provide us with written details of the name, address and telephone number of the person who will be collecting your child. We will agree with You how to verify the identity of the person who is to collect your child. This can be with a password or photo ID.
Although we have systems in place to ensure the safety of all Students and the occurrence of a missing child is extremely rare, in the event of such an incident the following steps will be taken.
If it is discovered that a child is unaccounted for then a full search of the building and its immediate surroundings will take place. On no account will any other children be left unsupervised.
If after a thorough search it proves unsuccessful in establishing the whereabouts of the child, the emergency services and the parent/guardian/carer will be contacted.
Once the situation has been resolved an internal investigation will take place to examine how it occurred and to put immediate measures in place to ensure it does not happen again.
Data protection act
The Club keeps secure records of Students emergency contacts for the purpose of efficiency and consistency of administration. A Member’s record can be viewed by them at any time. We will not share any of your personal details without your permission, aside from where the law allows. This complies with the Data Protection Act 1998.
​
Complaints policy
In the first instance an informal verbal complaint can be made to the instructor in a non aggressive manner, please remember we do not accept any forms of bullying and harassment. We hope that this discussion will be professional and enough to resolve the complaint. If you wish to further your complaint, from there on all complaints should be directed to northcornwalldanceandfitness@outlook.com with “complaint” as the email subject line. Complaints will be dealt with in a timely and efficient manner, making reasonably practicable changes to policies, practices and procedures where necessary. By emailing Your complaint to Us, a secure paper trail record will be kept for the interest of all parties involved.
Our terms and conditions are designed to protect both us and our members. We recommend that you read them carefully and contact us if you have any questions or concerns.