When you go to your club to play, it should be a chance to have fun, learn some new skills, compete, or maybe just to hang out with your friends.
For Sailing to be fun, you need to know you are safe. That means that other people should treat you with respect, and shouldn’t do anything that makes you feel unsafe.
That includes the young people who you sail with. It also includes coaches, or the people who help to run your club.
There are lots of things in place to make sure that the people who coach and the places where you can sail, offer a good service to children and teenagers, and know how to look after you properly.
What to do if you are worried?
Here are some of the ways that you can deal with people who may be causing you problems.
- Tell an adult that you trust. This could be your parents, a coach or someone else at your school or sailing club that you are happy to talk to.
- Your sailing club will have someone that you can speak to. Check your club notice board for details of a Club Welfare Officer.
You can contact Phil Tilley, All Afloat Trustee and Sport Wales Board Member by email (phil.tilley@all-afloat.wales) or telephone 07801876613
If you’d like us to call or email you back, just tell us how and when.
You can also contact Childline on 0800 1111 for advice and support, or visit www.childline.org.uk for lots of ways to ask questions and get help.
The NSPCC protects children across the UK and run a wide range of services for both children and adults, including national helplines and local projects.
For more information about bullying and how to beat it, try Kidscape.
Problem behaviour – what’s not okay?
Most people have a great experience sailing, but sometimes people might do things that make you or a friend feel unsafe or unhappy. This is not OK. Some of these things might include someone:
- Picking on you or bullying you (this could also be online or via text)
- Hitting you or hurting you
- Making comments about the way you look or speak
- Making racist, sexist or homophobic comments
- Getting you to be friends with them or to meet them or spend time with them when you don’t want to
These things are not OK, and you have the right to deal with them.
Children and Young People websites
www.there4me.com – Advice sitefor teenagers 11 – 16. Onscreen advice about all sorts of things,including bullying, abuse, relationships, exams, drugs, difficulties at home
www.childline.org.uk – ChildLine is the free, 24-hour helpline for children and young people in the UK. Children and young people can call on 0800 1111 about any problem, at any time – day or night.
www.bullying.co.uk – This site has lots of advice for children about dealing with bullying. There are also useful links to other advice
www.thinkyouknow.co.uk – 5 – 7 years old? This website is to help you go on the internet in a safe way and know who to talk to if you are worried.
www.thinkyouknow.co.uk – 8 – 10 years old? You probably know a lot about using the internet. This website is to show you what we think is good, look at what’s not and show you ways you can get yourself out of bad situations.
www.thinkyouknow.co.uk – 11 – 16 years old? How to have fun, how to stay in control and how to report
