BWY Lead Child Protection Officer: Angie Punaks, 01394 446054, .

British Wheel of Yoga teachers accept that all children and young people have the following basic rights:

• to be valued as a person
• to be treated with dignity and respect
• to be cared for as a young person
• to be kept safe

BWY teachers will provide a class in which each young person feels safe and cared for, is valued, and is treated with dignity and respect. BWY teachers will provide a duty of care to protect each young person from abuse.

Teaching yoga to the under 18s

If you are working with young people under 18 years of age you need to hold a current Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) Enhanced Disclosure certificate. Certificates are valid for three years from the date of issue. See downloads section below for more information.

If you are teaching yoga to children please inform Angie Punks, the BWY Ethics, Equity & Welfare Manager, including your certificate number and expiry date: , 01394 446 054. Download General Information and a Checklist of requirements.

It is important for those teaching for a school, college, sports centre or other organisation to follow that organisation's own CP procedures. Find out who within the organisation is the CP referral person, and also request a copy of their CP Policy. The CP referral person should be able to explain their correct procedures, supported by their CP Policy. If the organisation does not have a CP Policy, follow the BWY CP Policy. Those teaching independent classes should follow the BWY CP Policy.

Teaching under 18-year-olds in an adult class (pop-up window)
This could apply to any teacher offering adult classes as sometimes teachers are asked if an under 18-year-old can attend the class. If an under 18-year-old attends an adult class there are Child Protection implications - open pop-up window for further information plus see download documents below. See also issues related to Equity.

Child Protection training

"Safeguarding and Protecting Children" is a SportscoachUK basic training workshop which can be accessed locally across the UK. The 3-hour workshop covers Code of Conduct, good practice to help prevent child abuse, understanding and identifying signs of abuse, and appropriate action to take in response to a concern. The book that accompanies the course is comprehensive and provides good reference material.

To find the nearest workshop to you, go to www.sportscoachuk.org and access 'Quick Locate Workshop'; you can then check your relevant geographical area. Alternatively, you can phone 01509 226 130.

Child Protection documents to download

Enhanced Disclosure application information

General Information
Checklist of requirements

Child protection policy statement
Child Protection policy - full policy document*
Statement of Care
Recommended supervision ratios

Child protection - important telephone numbers for tutors
Child protection - important numbers for parents and children

Consent form - photos of children
Consent form - photos of babies (Form K)
Consent form - hands-on adjustment of children
Consent form - hands-on adjustment of babies (Form J)

Under-18s attending an adult class: Requirements document
Under-18s attending an adult class: Protection agreement form

Support Sheet 1: for people receiving a disclosure
Support Sheet 2: for people who have reported concerns or an incident
Support Sheet 3: for people against whom a complaint or an allegation has been raised

Child Protection paperwork: Secure storage and handling policy

*Associated forms can be obtained from Angie Punaks – Ethics, Equity & Welfare Manager, Central Office, 25 Jermyn Street, Sleaford, Lincs, NG34 7RU. 01529 306851.