TTNZ Calendararrow-right.svg

 

Commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi

Table Tennis NZ recognises Te Tiriti o Waitangi as Aotearoa New Zealand’s founding document and is committed to upholding the mana of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the principles of Partnership, Protection and Participation.

Policy CS6: Transportation of Children and Young People

Purpose

To ensure that children and young people are safe when travelling when engaged in Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ activities or events.

To ensure that staff and volunteers work in ways that safeguard children and young people and themselves.

Application

Staff:

This policy applies to all staff who are employed, volunteer (including parents and caregivers), or engaged by Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ, including contractors.

Children and young people:

This policy applies to all children and young people up to 18 years of age who are taking part in Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ activities.

Our commitment

Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ is committed to ensuring we take all reasonable steps to ensure the safety and wellbeing of children and young people when they are travelling to engage in activities associated with Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ.

Minimum requirements

These are the minimum requirements when the activities of Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ require the transportation of children and young people via staff, volunteers or a commercial organisation such as taxi, or bus companies.

The following must be adhered to:

  • All drivers and chaperones must have cleared Police vetting and reference checks to the standards required in The Children’s Act 2014 and recruited in accordance with Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ Safer Recruitment Policy.
  • All drivers must have a current full New Zealand drivers licence or approved equivalent.
  • Any new penalties must be disclosed to Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ.
  • If you carry passengers for hire or reward, you need a passenger (P) endorsement. FIND OUT MORE
  • Staff and volunteers must not consume alcohol or drugs (illegal or prescription where they might impair the driver’s ability to safely drive) prior to or during the transportation of children and young people.
  • Staff and volunteers who transport or work with children and young people must submit to random alcohol and drugs tests as required by Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ.
  • Failing a drug or alcohol test will always result in instant dismissal.
  • All vehicles (private and commercial) must:
    • have a current WOF
    • be appropriately insured to be used for business purposes
    • passengers must not exceed the maximum capacity
  • Drivers must ensure seat belts are worn by children and young people while in transit.
  • Appropriate child car seats must be used. If a car seat is not available, the driver should not transport a child.
  • Speed limits must be adhered to, and weather conditions must be considered.
  • Parents, caregivers or whānau must give written consent if their child is going to travel in another adult’s car.
  • Pick up and drop off locations, expected time of departure, and arrivals must be clearly communicated to children and young people staff, volunteers, parent, and caregivers well in advance of the event.
  • Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ, relevant staff and volunteers will have up to date contact details of the parents and caregivers of children and young people involved in Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ activities.
  • Contact details of key staff must be communicated to children, young people, parents, caregivers, whānau staff and volunteers well in advance of the event.
  • Drivers can remove a child or young person from the vehicle for bad behaviour but must not leave them unattended. The child or young person’s parent, caregivers or whānau, Child Safeguarding Representative (CSR)/line manager or in extreme cases, the Police, should be contacted.

Safe ways of working

Staff, volunteers, and contractors must be familiar with Table Tennis NZ’s and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ Code of Conduct.

Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ strongly encourages staff and volunteers not to:

  • drive a child or young person home or to any other place without prior arrangement and permission from their parent or carer (other than your own child)
  • find yourself left alone with a child or young person in a vehicle or club premises (other than your own child)
  • send a child or young person home with another person without prior arrangement and permission from their parent or carer
  • substitute an approved driver without prior permission from Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ
  • use your own vehicle to transport children and young people at any time, either to and from a training session or to away matches without prior arrangement and permission from their parent or carer (other than your own child)

There may be occasions where a child or young person requires transport in an emergency or where not transporting them may place a child or young person at risk. These circumstances must be immediately communicated to parents, caregivers and whānau and a line manager at the time and be recorded and reported to a CSR and parents/caregivers within 24 hours.

If a situation occurs when a driver is unable to avoid being alone in a vehicle with a child or young person, then the driver must ensure that the child or young person is in the back of the vehicle sitting behind the passenger seat.

A risk assessment must be carried out and risk managed before transporting children and young people to an event including:

  • any particular transportation or health needs of the children and young people
  • the safety and appropriateness of the vehicle
  • the length and planned route of the journey and rest stops
  • weather and traffic conditions
  • how many drivers are required to allow regular breaks
  • child to adult ratios

Staff and volunteers must report any safety and child protection concerns in relation to a child, young person, staff member or volunteer to the relevant Child Safeguarding Representative at Table Tennis NZ and any organisation affiliated to Table Tennis NZ.

Version: November 2024

More TTNZ Policies