Ground Rules

This document covers the ground rules for all Every Good Work project youth groups. 

Our aim is for all Every Good Work project groups and activities to be safe and inclusive spaces where all young people, volunteers and staff feel respected, safe and understood.

To help us achieve this we have a group agreement, a procedure for managing young people that break these ground rules and a procedure and guidelines for managing issues between young people.

We expect all young people, volunteers and staff to agree to these and support us in keeping Every Good Work project youth groups safe for all people.

The current Every Good Work youth groups are:

  1. Field
  2. Hot Chocolate
  3. Stand

Every Good Work project agreement

‍All members of Every Good Work project, young people, volunteers, members of staff  help create a safe space for each other by agreeing to  the following:

  1. Treating each other with respect.
  2. Welcoming and including new people to the Every Good Work groups.
  3. Being understanding of each other’s differences.
  4. Not using sexually inappropriate language or innuendos.
  5. Not taking photos or making video calls during groups.
  6. Avoiding getting involved in gossip of any kind.
  7. Respect each other’s personal space and boundaries.
  8. Not using the youth group as a romantic space.
  9. Not swearing or using violent, bullying or abusive behaviour/language.
  10. Not using drugs and/or alcohol before or during sessions.
  11. Not bringing any illegal items into the youth club.
  12. Ensuring the only appropriate online content is being viewed/used.
  13. Not making assumptions about anyone’s gender identity or sexual orientation.

These are our priority ground rules but there may be other behaviours not covered that may require action if any of the Every Good Work clubs or activities are made unsafe as a result.

What happens if a young person breaks the rules?

If a young person breaks the ground rules it may make staff, volunteers or young people feel unsafe and if this happens it may be necessary to take the following actions.

  1. If a young person breaks the ground rules they will receive a warning from a member of staff.
  2. If a young person consistently or seriously breaks ground rules or makes the drop-in/youth group/activity unsafe they will be asked to leave that session immediately. Parents/carers will be contacted then to inform them the young person has left the club and a conversation will be held with the young person before they can return to the club on the next session.
  3. In cases of serious or regular misconduct, Every Good Work staff may decide that groups are not appropriate for a young person, and they will be ‘suspended’ for a period of time to be decided by staff. In most cases their situation will be reviewed on a regular basis to see if the situation has changed, and they can return.
  4. In extreme circumstances it may be decided that a young person cannot safely be a part of the youth group. This will be communicated clearly to the young person in question with clear reasons given. There may be other opportunities in the future that are more appropriate for them to attend, and they will be contacted should this be the case.

Managing issues between young people

  1. Deal with it directly by speaking to the young person you are having an issue/difficulty with.
  2. If speaking to them directly does not get things resolved, in some circumstances we may be able to offer a mediation where a member of staff talks with you both to try and help resolve the issue.
  3. If you don’t feel able to resolve the issue directly with the young person, you may wish to make a complaint to a member of staff who, if necessary, will deal with the issue for you.

What if I have a complaint about a volunteer or staff member?

Please see the safeguarding section of our website.