How long should a YAC session be?

It’s up to you! YAC sessions are usually at least two hours long, and length can vary depending on what you’re doing. Just make sure that parents know what time to drop their children off and collect them.  Online sessions are usually a bit shorter, with time for screen breaks too.

We provide session registers and a model arrival, collection and late collection procedure (PDF) to help you keep you session running smoothly.

---

How many volunteers should be present?

During a session, YAC volunteers should always work within sight and hearing of another YAC volunteer. You should avoid being alone with a group of children, and make sure that you are never alone with an individual child.

Each meeting should therefore ideally be run by a minimum of four fully approved YAC Branch Leaders or Assistants who have current (i.e. less than three years old) DBS checks through YAC. This will allow enough adults to accompany groups of children to the toilet, or to manage an emergency if one should arise. If you do not have four volunteers for any session, make sure you plan in advance how you will manage this, including limiting the number of members who can attend. You must never run a session with fewer than two formally registered YAC volunteers.

The required ratio of adults to children is at least one YAC volunteer for every eight children. If you run a session outside this ratio, you will not be covered under YAC insurance. Adults who are not YAC-registered volunteers (for example, volunteers who have not been formally approved, guest speakers, parents, venue staff and volunteers whose criminal record disclosure is more than three years old) do not count toward the 1:8 ratio.

On some occasions, you may decide that the activity you are doing needs additional supervision. If you are going out to visit a site for example or planning an activity which involves the use of potentially dangerous equipment, you might prefer to have one volunteer for every four children. You can manage this by limiting the number of places available at each session.

It often works well if your team take on particular roles during the session, to make sure that important jobs get done and the session runs smoothly. These can include: 

• Someone in overall charge of the session.
• Someone who takes the register, checks the consent forms and makes sure all the information about the group is readily available.
• Someone in charge of first aid: this must of course be a qualified first aider, who is responsible for the first aid kit.
• Someone who makes sure all the children are collected safely at the end of the session.

---

Can parents/carers stay at a YAC session?

To enable members to really get involved in your sessions and interact with one another, it’s usually best for parents and carers not to stay. Sometimes however, either you or the member might decide you do want an adult to stay. This could be, for example, because a child has an additional need that a parent/carer can help support, or because of nervousness at a first session.

Parents/carers must not be asked to take responsibility for any child except their own, and should never be asked to take other children out of sight and hearing of the rest of the group. For example, a parent should not be asked to take another child with them when taking their own child to the toilet. Parents do not count towards the adult to child ratio.

As with any adult taking part in a YAC session, you should give parents a copy of YAC’s Safeguarding Code of Behaviour so they understand the behaviour they can expect from you and that you expect from them.

If a parent is going to be accompanying their child to every session, you may like to talk to them about whether they would like to become a YAC volunteer.

Some YAC branches run occasional family sessions when all members bring along their parents and siblings. This can create a really great atmosphere, but please make sure that parents know they must supervise their own children at all times.

---

How should a YAC session be structured?

Each Branch, and each session, is different; but the following outline are key aspects of each session:

• Knowing when you have access to your venue and when volunteers arrive
• The arrival of YAC members
• The session itself and the different activities taking part
• The collection of YAC members
• A debrief and saying goodbye to the volunteers

This checklist has been designed to help those new to planning sessions to make sure that you have covered all health and safety essentials: 

To help you, there is a MS Word and MS Excel version of the session plan and risk-benefit assessment. Please note that the MS Excel spreadsheet has multiple sheets for each part of the form and is pre-formulated to help identify level of risk.

If you are producing instructions for a new activity for your volunteers and/or members then our Activity Instructions template is designed to help you, especially if you are new to writing activity instructions.

---

Session Basics Checklist

CBA-managed YAC branches can use this checklist to make sure your YAC sessions are covered by YAC insurance.

Please Note: that this only applies to CBA-managed clubs that have completed YAC’s approval process and are in possession of a current YAC insurance certificate.

• Only take responsibility for children for whom you have current (less than one year old) medical and emergency contact information. Make sure you have this with you at every session. Use the Branch Membership Form to collect the information.
• Have at least two current YAC Branch Leaders or Assistants to run the session.
• Have no more than 8 children present for each Branch Leader or Assistant.
• Have a First Aider and a First Aid Kit.
• Have a risk assessment for the session and tell everyone what’s in it.
• Make sure all of the adults present have read the YAC Safeguarding Code of Behaviour
• Always work in groups, making sure each Branch Leader or Assistant is within the sight and hearing of another Branch Leader or Assistant. Never be on your own with a child.
• Make sure you have a copy of the current YAC insurance certificate.