Policies, Procedures & Guidelines

There are several policies and procedures that affect club junior activities programs. Some of the major ones that need to be considered include:

*When clicking on the below links, scroll to the bottom of the page to locate resources

• SLSA 1.01 Water Safety Policy, and 1.01A Water Safety Procedure
• SLSQ MS13 High Visibility Clothing Policy
• SLSA 6.04 Child Safe Policy & SLSA Child Safe Guideline
• Club Statement of Commitment
• SLSA 6.20 Social Media Policy & SLSQ MPA1 Member Social Media and Online Communications Policy
• SLSQ MS04 Receiving and Reporting Disclosures or Suspicions of Harm to Minors Policy
• SLSQ MS02 Chaperoning and Supervision of Minors Policy
• SLSQ Photography Non-Consent Form
• Under 8 Introduction to Negotiating the Break Guideline
• MSP04 – SLSQ Junior Activities Program Breach

The below image outlines the use of boards by nippers.

Please note, SLSQ has further regulations with regards to U8s on Boards. These can be seen below:

Criteria
Under 8 Nippers participating in activities within Surf Life Saving Queensland affiliated clubs are approved to use an SLSA approved Soft “Nipper” Board on both Nipper & Training days, ONLY when ALL the following conditions are complied with:

• Prior to any training, the Under 9 Preliminary Evaluations must be completed.
• A completed Under 9 Junior Activity Competency Record needs to be kept in the Documents section on Surfguard or the Club JAC can keep a registered list within your clubhouse. Please note you must not raise an Under 9 award in Surfguard.
• Training can commence from 1st January each year – (Exception North Queensland Branch from 1st August).
• Under no circumstance can an Under 8 compete in ANY competition board event.
• U8s on boards must be conducted on flat water only, NOT in surf conditions. (The definition of flat water can be found in Section 2 of this policy below).
• Participants must be Active, Financial members.
• The Club Risk Assessment must be completed by the coach and maintained as current.
• All U8 Board Training must be approved by the clubs Management Committee.
  NOTE: The training approval form specifically requests the Age Group and Location to be provided.
• Correct Water Safety is in place
  

Clubs should provide U8’s with an introduction to Soft “Nipper” Boards as per the SLSA learner plan
prior to any approved training session or at the end of the season prior to entering the Under 9 age
group.

Flat Water Definition
Flat water is defined as; Water with no or little current, little wind influence and very small waves.
Hazards are minimal and there is ready access to safe landing. The Risk Assessable elements to determination of flat water for the conduct of Under 8 Board training are explained in the below table.

Any members taking part in Under 8 on soft nipper boards need to acknowledge this is taking place
on the overall Club Risk Assessment document.

Key items and considerations may be noted throughout this manual.

SLSA and SLSQ Policies are located:

SLSQ Policies- SLSQ Lifesaving Member Hub Resource Centre
SLSA Policies- SLS Member Area Document Library