Managing Children away from Club and Transportation Policy

In order to ensure the safety and welfare of children, Firwood Bootle Cricket Club has adopted the following policy in relation to transportation of children to and from matches and training sessions:

Unless otherwise notified and agreed between parents/carers and the provider of transport, parents/carers are always responsible for the safe delivery and collection of their child to and from matches and or training.
The location of matches/competitions will be notified in advance by team mangers thus providing parents/cares with the opportunity to make appropriate arrangements to deliver and collect their child at the appropriate time.
It is not the responsibility of the club, coaches or match managers to arrange transport.
The Club and any coaches, team managers and admin assistance acting on its behalf will have no responsibility for private transportation arrangements organised by parents/carers with other members of the club, friends or family members. Any such arrangements entered into by coaches, team managers, admin assistants, adult players etc are purely private arrangements for which the club takes no responsibility.
As the club cannot guarantee the availability of first aid facilities when attending away fixtures and to ensure that there is transport available should a fixture be terminated early (e.g due to weather) parents/carers are requested to remain in attendance throughout. Should this not be possible, they should arrange for another parent/carer to take responsibility. Match Managers, umpires and scorers should not be asked to be responsible for children if parents/carers are unable to remain in attendance as they will be fully occupied in running the fixture.
Should a child be travelling home with another child/parent/carer after a match or training, this must be notified to the coach/manager in advance.
Parents/carers are advised that when making private arrangements for the transport of children, it is their responsibility to make appropriate checks in respect of insurance, licensing documentation and road worthiness of the vehicle. Parents/carers should also be satisfied that the driver is licensed and medically fit to drive
Should a parent/carer be late delivering or collecting their child, it is their responsibility to make contact with the coach or match manager as soon as possible in order to agree a mutually acceptable solution. In the absence of contact from parents/carers, the coach or match manager will attempt to contact the parents/carers using the contact details that were provided during the registration process (it is the responsibility of the parents/cares to notify the club of any changes to contact details during the season)
If all alternatives have been exhausted and an adult has to transport a child at the end of a fixture, and in the absence of communication with the parent/carer, the default will be to take them to Firwood Bootle Cricket Club.

To minimise risk to both the adult and child, the following procedures should be adhered to : –

- the driver should hold a current ECB DBS (Enhanced) check,
- be medically fit to drive
- be in possession of a properly licensed, insured and maintained vehicle
- the child’s parents/carers must be informed of the arrangements as soon as possible (ideally by email/text message in addition to voice communication
- a person other than the planned driver should talk to the child about the proposed transport arrangements to ensure that the child is comfortable with the plans
- the driver should attempt to have more than one child in the car
- at all times the driver should aim not to be alone in a vehicle with a child (other than their own) – seat belts must be worn in accordance with current legislation.