Club Guide Section 12
MEMBERSHIP DEVELOPMENT Surf Life Saving SA endeavours to provide continuous personal and professional development opportunities for all members through their lifesaving experiences. Surf Sports plays a major role in the preparation of a surf lifesaver to meet the physical standards necessary for saving lives in the surf. Over the years the competition element of surf lifesaving has evolved from an aid to the physical preparation of a lifesaver to its own identity and plays a major part in the social development of a lifesaver. This section of the club administration guide is designed to guide Team Managers, Age Group Managers, Officials, Coaches, Parents/Supporters and Administrators through the basic systems and processes around getting our Nippers and youth involved in surf sports whilst following some general guidelines and principles in order to creating an even and fair playing field. Resources: SLSA and SLSSA Bulletins, Circulars and policies can be found via the SLSA Members Portal as well 35th Edition of the Surf Sports Manual www.sls.com.au Play By the Rules the play by the rules website provides information, tools and resources to help deal with discrimination, harassment and child safety issues in sport. Some of the tricky topics include team selection, abusive spectators, complaints and much more to help you in your role as Age Manager, Coach, Spectator etc. www.playbytherules.net.au SLSA codes of conduct Clubs are reminded that they are responsible for the conduct and behaviour of their coaches, supporters, participants and parents. Codes of conduct can also be found in the Surf Sports manual or on the Play by the Rules website. AGE GROUPS Children must be 5 years of age to be registered and permitted to participate in junior activities (other than Surf Babies and Little Lifesavers*). A child s age group for the season is their age as at midnight on 30 September. This is also their competitive age if participating at interclub carnivals and events as well as junior state championships. Under 6 Under 7 Under 8 Under 9 Turns 6 after midnight on 30 September Turns 7 after midnight on 30 September Turns 8 after midnight on 30 September Turns 9 after midnight on 30 September Under 10 Turns 10 after midnight on 30 September Under 11 Turns 11 after midnight on 30 September Under 12 Turns 12 after midnight on 30 September Under 13 Turns 13 after midnight on 30 September Under 14 Turns 14 after midnight on 30 September
SURF BABIES AND LITTLE LIFESAVERS Surf Babies and Little Lifesavers is a water confidence and aquatic safety program specifically designed for young beach lovers and their families. Adults will gain confidence taking young children to the beach by learning how to identify hazards, how to respond to a beach based emergency and how to supervise children appropriately in the open water. Surf Babies is open to children aged 6 months 2 years old Little Lifesavers is open to children aged 2 years to 5 years old Both programs are conducted by Surf Life Saving SA across Adelaide beaches, usually in January, February and March. For further information please contact Surf Life Saving SA on 8354 6900. COME AND TRY Any child wishing to participate in junior surf lifesaving activities under come and try must still complete a waiver form. The waiver form can be found on the member s portal and once signed is valid for the duration of that specific activity and the forms must be retained by the Club for insurance purposes. The junior development program Nippers is designed to ensure children from the ages of 5 to 14 have fun at the beach while participating in lessons that will allow them to become trained lifesavers as well as strong surf sports competitors. The Nippers program has been developed to be delivered on the beach, by the Clubs involving Members and Parents as the Age Group Managers, Junior Coaches and Water Safety Personnel. Nippers progressively introduces knowledge and skills learning outcomes through lessons that are tailored to each of the age group ensuring the content is relevant and most of all exciting and engaging. The Award Pathway for Juniors is; Under 6 Under 7 Under 8 Under 9 Surf Play 1 (10 lessons) Surf Play 2 (12 lessons Surf Aware 1 (12 lessons) Surf Aware 2 (12 lessons) Under 10 Surf Safe 1 (13 lessons) Under 11 Surf Safe 2 (14 lessons) Under 12 Surf Smart 1 (16 lessons) Under 13 Surf Smart 2 and Resuscitation Certificate (16 lessons) Under 14 Surf Rescue Certificate (SRC)
The Surf Life Saving Australia Junior Development Resource Kit includes: Age Manager Guide Age Guides for each Age Award level Record Sheets Certificates Skills Posters Coaching Tips Manuals and DVD s The Surf Life Saving Australia Junior Development Resource Kit is available from the SLSA website www.sls.com.au and by logging into the Members Portal. Should you have issues in obtaining these resources please contact Surf Sports at Surf Life Saving SA. Junior Assessments and Awards Each year junior members are required to complete several competencies as part of their surf lifesaving experience. Many of the junior activities will be conducted in the water and to ensure that all children have a suitable swimming ability to allow them to participate, as well as grow in confidence. Clubs are required to conduct the below evaluation before any junior water activity or training commences. The intent of the evaluation of each junior is to observe their personal swimming and water survival activity. Remember to encourage this process as some children will be nervous and may put unnecessary pressure on themselves. It s about keeping them positive and engaged through the process. If the evaluation is not completed competently it does not preclude them from becoming a member or continuing with junior surf education and training activities. Age Group Swim Requirement Float Requirement Under 6 Nil Nil Under 7 Nil Nil Under 8 25 metre swim any stroke 1 minute survival float Under 9 25 metre swim any stroke 1 minute survival float Under 10 25 metre swim - freestyle 1 ½ minute survival float Under 11 50 metre swim freestyle 2 minute survival float Under 12 100 metre swim freestyle 2 minute survival float Under 13 150 metre swim freestyle 3 minute survival float Under 14 200 metre swim freestyle in less than 5 minutes 3 minute survival float
Junior Assessments and Awards Assessors Age Group Manager, Level 1 Coach, Level 1 Official, Training Officer (SRC/Bronze), Assessor. Conducting the Assessment this evaluation should be conducted in a safe aquatic environment with a recommended 1:1 water safety ration. A 1:1 water safety ratio is especially important for new members where Clubs may not be familiar with the ability of the participant. Following the Evaluation any child who does not meet the required evaluation level will require a higher level of supervision when involved in water based activities at the discretion of the Club. It is a requirement that these children remain in shallow water and based on a 1:1 ratio until the child is deemed competent in relation to the preliminary skills evaluation guidelines. Any child who does not complete the preliminary skills evaluation competently can progress to water based junior activities noting regular water safety 1:5 ratio requirements must be provided as per the SLSA water safety policy. Skills Progression - Clubs are encouraged to conduct intra-club swimming and board training, as well as competition related events in a safe environment regarding distances, water safety personnel and in relation to the abilities of their junior members. This environment should be encouraged allowing juniors to challenge their own personal skills and abilities, allowing them to be more confident in pursuing carnivals and other events. Junior Competition Skills Evaluation and Competition Eligibility From the age of 8 (Under 9) juniors can begin to compete at SLSSA Carnivals, Events and State Championships. There is no competition skills evaluation requirement for juniors to compete in non-water related events such as sprints, flags, relay, wades, wade relay and the running aspect of the Cameron relay. To ensure that all juniors who wish to compete in swim and board related events have the ability, strength and fitness standard, they must be able to complete the junior activities competition skills evaluation for their age group which is a water proficiency assessment. The competition skills evaluation is noted below; Age Group Under 6 Under 7 Under 8 Under 9 Under 10 Under 11 Under 12 Under 13 Under 14 Assessors Competition Skills Evaluation Ocean Timed Swim Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable 150m ocean swim within 12 minutes 150m ocean swim within 12 minutes 288m ocean swim within 11 minutes 288m ocean swim within 10 minutes 288m ocean swim within 8 minutes 288m ocean swim within 8 minutes Level 2 Official, Assessor, Training Officer (SCR/Bronze)
Junior Assessments and Awards Ocean Timed Swim following the successful demonstration of the preliminary skills assessment, this competition skills evaluation must be achieved before any junior can participate in water events at carnivals (excludes wades). Note: the preliminary assessment swim is a prerequisite to the competition skills evaluation (ocean timed swim) and these are two separate swims. One swim cannot be used to qualify a child for the other requirement. All Clubs and Age Group Managers have a duty of care at SLSSA carnivals and events to ensure that their junior members are safe and can confidently and competently swim the competition distance and course. Therefore: - Only juniors who have achieved their competition skills evaluation for their relevant age group are to be entered into water events at carnivals - Clubs, Age Group Managers and parents should also take into consideration the condition, the course and the physical and emotional state of their juniors on the day of the carnival and only enter those they consider to be confident and competent to complete the course in a safe and timely manner. SLSSA Carnivals, Events and State Championships Note: For insurance and safety purposes all Clubs must enter their junior competitors into their selected events through the Event Management System These must be submitted prior to every carnival and/or event by 5pm Wednesday. It is the Club s responsibility to check that their competitors are proficient and hold the appropriate awards to ensure each competitor entered is eligible to compete. An Event Management System Entry Guide can be found on the Surf Lifesaving SA website under the Surf Sports menu and will be distributed to all clubs. Each year junior competitors are also required to complete the relevant Junior Award per age group in order to compete at Junior State Championships. Under 13 s are also required to complete their Resuscitation Certificate and Under 14 s their Surf Rescue Certificate. We encourage all Clubs to complete this prior to the Christmas break.
Assessment of Resuscitation and Surf Rescue Certificate Clubs need to submit Form 14 to SLSSA via SurfGuard prior to the assessment. Resuscitation Certificate assessments require a minimum of 7 days notice on SurfGuard and Surf Rescue Certificates require a minimum of 14 days notice on SurfGuard. Note: Children selected for the Junior State Development Team/s will require these awards prior to final team selection confirmation (by end of November). Recording the Assessment, Evaluation and Awards SLSSA must be advised of the preliminary assessment, competition skills evaluation and junior award when these are completed via recorded entry into SurfGuard. This can be tracked on the beach by using the Junior Award Record Sheet and the Junior Competition Eligibility Form. Whenever Clubs conduct any form of skills assessment or evaluation the above forms will need to be entered into SurfGuard for each member. Please note that all awards must be entered in SurfGuard by the close of nominations for junior state championships. Only Junior Administration Officers and Club Lifesaving Advisors can enter SurfGuard assessment requests and/or enter proficiencies and completed awards. Age Group Managers and Assistants SLSSA strongly encourages all Clubs to select and endorse Age Group Managers who are competent in leading and coordinating children in the junior area of surf lifesaving and its activities. Mandatory requirements for Age Group Managers are: Registered with the Club for the current season and are a financial member of the Club Completed the SLSSA member protection procedure and are familiar with the process involved Hold a current National Police Certificate Complete the Age Group Managers course and accreditation process
Age Group Managers and Assistants Age Group Manager Courses are conducted by SLSSA annually. These courses include a briefing on the member protection procedure and process. Clubs are responsible for ensuring their Age Group Managers (and Assistants) attend a course conducted by SLSSA prior to the season. For those Clubs willing to conduct their own Age Manager Courses please consult with SLSSA. As a requirement of conducting junior activities each season, Clubs are required to provide SLSSA with a list of their endorsed Age Group Managers and Assistants. Clubs are to advise SLSSA of any changes to this group throughout the season. Water Safety Requirements Adequate water safety must be provided before any activities can be conducted in the water. Our duty of care to junior members and participants cannot be overstated. Under no circumstances are non-surf lifesaver qualified personnel to assume the role of Water Safety Officers for junior activities. Only those with a proficient SLSA Surf Rescue Certificate and Bronze Medallion are eligible to act in this capacity. Please refer to the SLSA Water Safety Policy and Procedures. Responsibilities The Patrol Captain and/or Club appointed Water Safety Supervisor (WSS) must decide if the surf conditions are safe enough for junior activities as they are responsible for all water safety and risk assessments. The Patrol Captain/WSS in conjunction with the Club Junior Coordinator must decide the area to be used. The Patrol Captain/WSS has the authority to cease junior water activities if in their opinion the conditions are deemed to be high risk and unsafe at any time. Where a moderate risk is assessed a modified activity course may be applied. The Patrol Captain, WSS and Junior Coordinator have the responsibility to ensure no junior aquatic activities take place without appropriate water cover, regardless of being conducted during or outside patrolling periods. The Junior Coordinator, in consultation with the Patrol Captain/WSS is to arrange water safety personnel. Water safety personnel are required to wear orange caps for identification including a brightly coloured branded water safety rash top.
Water Safety Requirements Responsibilities On duty patrolling members can only be used for water safety when the minimum patrol requirements have been met and at the discretion of the Patrol Captain, provided that their patrol duties are not compromised. The recommended ratio for water safety is as follows: One (1) Water Safety Officer to five (5) participants or four (4) where a moderate risk is assessed; Approximately 50% of the Water Safety Officers should be on a rescue craft; It is also recommended that Water Safety Officers not on rescue craft wear swim fins and make use of rescue tubes or other floatation devices; An IRB dedicated to junior water activity is also preferable and counts as two (2) Water Safety Officers. A Rescue Water Craft (jet ski) if used counts as one (1); Where participants are qualified (SCR/Bronze) the ration is one (1) Water Safety Officer to twelve (12). At no time are water safety ratios to be compromised. Patrol Hour Accreditation Water Safety personnel are required to sign on whilst providing water safety. These members should record it as water safety in the patrol type column of the logbook. Hours will be credited and recognised by members accruing hours for water safety provision only. When a member reaches the age of 13 years (usually within the U14 Age Group) they train to achieve their Surf Rescue Certificate utilising the Surf Life Saving Australia Training Manual as the main resource. This is an extremely important development period for this age member as they transition between the junior program and becoming involved in Club Patrols and senior Club and State based activities. It is highly encouraged that Clubs maintain a focus on these members to encourage their transition into Surf Lifesavers and continue this focus into the U15 and U16 Age Groups where at the age of 16 years they will train to achieve the coveted Bronze Medallion.