Signup form "dos and don'ts" for members/parents

Maybe you’re joining a new club who use Coacha, or maybe your existing club is making the switch; either way, you’ll need to find your way around a new system.

We know most parents are extremely busy. So, to make your life easier, we’re providing you with these simple ‘dos and ‘don’ts' for your club’s signup form.

• Do: Read all of the information provided

We’ve developed Coacha’s signup form process over time and this includes adding more content which explains exactly what you need to do. If ever there are issues with member/parent logins, we normally find that they could have been prevented by reading everything on the form. We don’t mind pointing you in the right direction, but it will definitely save you a lot of time if you read everything on the form first. ?

• Don’t: Place parent email addresses in the member’s email field

Coacha is built around child protection best practice. It recognises a member’s age and if they are a child, diverts communications to the NOK. If the adult’s email address is in this field, the system won’t send any communications because it’ll think it belongs to the child.

Simply leave the member email blank and put your email address in the NOK email field only.

• Don’t: Tick ‘Primary contact’ unless the member is an adult whose NOK is the primary carer

As mentioned above, Coacha has some impressive safeguarding rules built in. It diverts member emails based on whether they’re a child or an adult. This happens automatically based on their DOB and therefore, you don’t need to do anything except from make sure your data is correct and in the right fields.

However, when a member turns 18, this stops. The system then starts sending communications to the member as they are an adult. We recongise that this isn’t always in the case and this is why the ‘Primary contact’ feature exists.

If you’re the primary carer for a vulnerable adult, you’ll need to remain the main point of contact for longer; in which case the field should be ticked.

If this option is ticked for a member who will be managing their own profile after turning 18, you’ll need to remember to untick it when that time comes.

• Do: Provide permission for under 18s to manage their own account

If you have a child who is between 16 and 18 and you’re happy for them to manage their own account and be contacted directly, that’s fine. You’ll need to let the club owner know so that they can confirm the ‘Consent settings for under 18s’ on your son/daughter’s profile. As best practice, you should also provide them with written consent.

So, what exactly are the child protection rules?

• If members are over 18, the message will send directly to the member.
• If the member is between the ages of 13 and 18, it will send to the Next of Kin (NOK) unless ticked otherwise.
• If the member is below the age of 13, it will send to the NOK only.
• The club’s child protection officer (if they have one) will also be copied into all emails to children.

We’ve put a lot of time and effort into the child protection features with Coacha. We work closely with safeguarding organisations to ensure we’re working by best practice to protect your children.

If you have any queries, please direct them to your club owner in the first instance who should be able to help. ?