Terms & Conditions for Cricket Courses / Small Group Coaching during Covid-19

Coaching Courses

Please note these terms and conditions will be constantly under review and will be updated or amended when new information is available from the Government and the ECB.

Bookings

All DFCA courses / Small group coaching have to be made by bookings online through the website. Upon completing the correct details & making payment you shall receive an automatic email confirmation. Due to popular demand for DFCA courses we are unable to guarantee any places. All places are on a first come first served basis through the website booking system. DFCA advise you to book early to avoid disappointment. YOU cannot turn up without going through the booking process, anyone who does so shall be turned away immediately due to Covid-19 guidlelines and protocols. Parents are however welcome to telephone or visit the website at last minute to check on course availability.

DFCA run a very strict policy on children being in the correct School year group. DFCA have courses tailored to each school year group, and players can only move on to the next school year group ranged course once the current academic year has ended at the end of July.

DFCA reserve the right to move a participant if an injury is likley to happen.

Failure to book your child into the correct school year group will result in a void booking, this is due to compliance with our health and safety and insurance. If you do have a void booking, you're booking is invalid and a refund will be given minus a £5 Administration charge. You shall then have to rebook into the correct age group subject to availability.

If DFCA deem the Batting or Wicket Keeping equipment to be unsafe for the participant and not fit for purpose DFCA reserve the right not to allow the participant to bat against a hard ball on our Junior Cricket, Advanced Cricket, & Specialist Batting coaching courses, and will speak to the parents/ carer direct to explain the best way forward with equipment for the player.

Course Cancellation

DFCA are willing to give a refund minus a £5 administration charge and offer the place to another customer as long as 7 days’ written notice prior to the course start date has been provided in order to be eligible. Refunds will not be given for circumstances beyond our control such as Holidays, extreme weather conditions, illness or self isolation, matches, injuries, or other events, that occur outside of DFCA courses.

Please note, by booking you are committing to the whole length of the course, you cannot therefore be given a refund if you are unable to make a selection of dates. You are also not entitled to a pay per session option. DFCA are unable to refund any individual dates and times that you cannot make since DFCA have had to invest to ensure all the resources are in place, such as net hire and commitment of DFCA staff and or specialist external contractors for the full course.

Cancellation by DFCA

If DFCA is required to cancel a full course then those booked will be given at least 7 days’ notice where possible. We will endeavour to offer alternative arrangements, or all monies can be refunded minus a £5 administration charge.

If DFCA is required to cancel a session(s) owing to staff absecense and DFCA cannot find another member of staff to cover, or a national or local lockdown is applied, or we can not run a session outdoors due to safety from weather beyond our control, and we cannot offer an alterntive session at the end of the course then DFCA will refund 70% of the fee for each session cancelled,.

if a venue cancels a booking/session of DFCA's once the course has started which is out of DFCA's control, then DFCA and the venue will offer an alternative date and time to the end of the booking and if succesful no refunds or credit will be given, if this is not possible then a refund of 70% of the fee for each session cancelled will be given.

DFCA reserve the right to cancel your booking if you do not follow local or national guidance on the tier systems and travel restrictions in a pandemic as we are trying to keep everyone as save as possible at this time and no refunds will be given if this happens.

Participants Safety

Ensuring a participant is well enough to attend a cricket coaching course – your responsibilities

DFCA are sure that by now you are familiar with the main symptoms of Coronavirus or any other virus.

High Temperature 38 degrees and above
continuous cough
Loss or change to your sense of smell or taste

If in doubt follow this guidance. Please do not attempt to self- diagnose. Whilst we know that temperatures are common in participants, during this period you cannot afford to take any risks. This is for everyone’s safety

If the participant develops any of these symptoms whilst on a DFCA Cricket coaching Course, DFCA will isolate the participant and call you – you will need to collect the participant as quickly as possible (u18s). Alternatively if this is an adult cricket coaching course (18+) then you will be informed to leave the cricket coaching course with immediate effect.

If the participant is clinically vulnerable or extremely clinically vulnerable then we highly advise you seek medical advice first and then speak to DFCA before booking.

All participants are advised to bring their own hand sanitiser to each cricket coaching course session which will be used during the session(s) this is to help stop the spread of viral and other infections.

DFCA will not be providing hand sanitiser due to potential skin irritation.

House Keeping

All sessions will include, registering, skills / net session, debrief, clearing all participants kit from the changing rooms or nets, allowing DFCA staff time to clean all kit. We ask all parents/guardians / careers to pick their individual up 10 minutes before the designated finish time. This is to allow a 10 minute cleaning process, so the coach can clean all the equipment thoroughly before the end of the session. This will also allow time for the particpants to depart safely before the next session/ participants arrive for their session.

Please bring your own water bottle as there may not be drinking water available.

Net & Course Safety will be explained to all players at the start of each session by your DFCA Coach, which will include the process of how players will keep themselves and other players safe in the sessions.

Whilst we do our very best to minimise risk please be aware as with any sport there be a risk of injury weather using a soft ball or a hard cricket ball.

DFCA will provide the following equipment to help players.

Any equipment used to aid development shall be used on a course

DFCA will provide cricket balls but if you would like to bring your own then you are more than welcome too. No saliva can be applied to any ball at any time, the DFCA coach reserves the right to abandon the session / remove the participant(s) from the session if the participant(s) are seen to be usign saliva to shine the ball.

Players Equipment for Junior, Advanced, Specialist Batting, Adult, & Howzat4kidz Cricket Courses.

Howzat4kidz

DFCA shall provide all equipment for Howzat4kidz courses as DFCA are able to clean this after use.

All Hardball Courses - Junior / Advanced / Specialist Batting / Adults

All participant(s) must bring their own batting/wicket keeping equipment which are as follows; Helmet, Bat, Pads, Gloves, box and bag.

All equipment must be in good working order and fit for purpose as DFCA will not be providing equipment to borrow or encouraging players to share equipment.

DFCA will not be lending any batting / wicket keeping equipment at this time.

Cricket Bag

For all equipment to be stored, when not in use.

Cricket Bat

All participants must bring their own cricket bat

Helmets

Every participant must wear an appoved ECB cricket helmet whilst batting and wicket keeping due to specific cricket or bowling machine balls being used at all times during the session(s) please note being struck by the ball can result in serious injury or death.

DFCA reserves the right to refuse players batting if the helmet is deemed unsafe for purpose.

Pads and Gloves

Every participant of all ages must wear both approved batting / wicket keeping pads and gloves during cricket coaching courses due to the use of specifice cricket balls which are hard. Failure to do so can lead to muscular injury or broken bones.

If you dont have any gloves or pads please inform DFCA before the session, DFCA can then do a soft ball batting session to cater for the individual.

Box

This must be worn at all times whilst batting or wicket keeping during the cricket coaching course. For males only, please note for female’s this remains optional.

For health and safety reasons / hygiene purposes DFCA will not supply a cricket box or cricket pants for participants to borrow. All participants must bring, use / wear their own correct underwear of cricket pants/ briefs, batting shorts, jock strap to ensure the box is safe and secure.

Insurance

All participants on DFCA courses are covered by our coaches' Public Liability Insurance.

First Aid

DFCA shall provide a first aid qualified member of staff on each course.

In the event of an accident, first aid will only be administered by DFCA Qualified Staff with masks and gloves and DFCA first aid equipment, to children/adult if the consent form question has been answered yes. The emergency services will be called if necessary, unless advised otherwise.

All medical condiitons no matter how minor must be stated on the booking form in the notes section. Any essential medication e.g. EpiPen’s, inhalers etc, must be made aware to the DFCA coach at registration and kept in the players bag safely each day.

For all outdoor courses please make sure appropriate sun cream is administered prior to coaching days when the weather is warm/hot together with additional supplies for self-application.

Arrival / Departure

Arrival and departure MUST be on time and DFCA shall not except excuses as the following session cannot commence until all participants have either been signed in or collected. Failure to comply with prompt arrival and collection, will result in a first and final warning. Failure to comply on a second occasion will result in the participants being removed from the course with no refund.

Arrival

1 - Please park in the car parks provided and make your way to the facility or drop off point.

2 – Drop off – Please can only one parent, carer or guardian per family drop their participant off at the drop off/ main door of the facility.

3 - Adult participants are to arrive at their own accord

4- Participants will line up outside the main doors to the facility or in a drop off point in an orderly manor in the queue. Please can participants arrive no earlier than 10 minutes before the session commences where a DFCA member of staff will meet you.

5 - All participants will be ticked off the register upon arrival.

6 - Parents, siblings, grandparents, carers or guardians will not be able to enter the indoor facility or watch due to our safeguarding of children, if we use an outdoor facility then you are welcome can stay and watch from a designated viewing area which will be stated to you by a dfca coach (only in the event of an emergency i.e ambulance has been called a parent, grandparent, carer, guardian or next of kin one person will be allowed in to the facility or training area.

7 - No ball games are to be played outside the facility whilst you are waiting.

Example of Arrival Times	Example of Collection Times
Session start time = 9am Arrival time = 8.50am	Session finish time = 10am Collection time = 9.50am
Example of Location for Arrival / Collection
Location - Arrival; wait outside the main entrance to the sports facility	Location - Collection; wait outside the main entrance to the sports facility
All arrival and collection times shall be specified in a confirmation email sent by DFCA once the course has been confirmed. Arrival and Collection locations shall also be specified in the confirmation email.

Departure

Parents, Grandparents, Carers or Guardians will arrive in the window given for collection, all parents will then line up in an orderly fashion. All participants u18 will leave via designated collection location and will be ticked off the register on the way out with the accompanying adult

All adult participants 18+ will leave at their own accord

Participant Behaviour Expectations

In the best interest of all individuals involved on a DFCA coaching course, DFCA expects all participants to behave in manner that is acceptable to create a safe, friendly, inclusive learning environment.

If for any reason a participant becomes disruptive or behaves in an aggressive or abusive manner, that may affect either the session in any way or affect the mental, physical, social emotional well being of any participant DFCA reserves the right to exclude the participant from the session.

If a DFCA coach feels that either the disruptiveness or behaviour shown by an individual is mild, then the participant in question shall recieve a first verbal warning. If the behaviour continues, then the indiivudal shall be excluded to a safe zone to reflect upon ones actions. If the individual can identify the behaviours they have shown and can apologise then they rejoin the session. If it was to happen a third time then the individual in question shall be excluded for the remainder of the session and for anyone under the age of 18, guardians will be called to collect them.

If any aggressive or abusive behaviour is shown that is endangering the wellbeing of another individual. (such as bullying, racial / homophobic slurrs, physical violence) These are completley unacceptable behaviours and on the very rare chance that this could happen, individuals shall be exluded on the spot and for anyone under the age of 18, guardians will be called to collect them. There shall be a review to whether the individual can complete the remainder of the course.

Photography

Occasionally DFCA take photographs for promotional activities. If you do not wish for either yourself or a particiapnt under the age of 18 to be photographed, please ensure you complete the booking form through the website speccifying you do not consent to photography.

Due to Safeguarding, Parents, Grandparents, Gaurdians, and carers are prohibitated to take photos or videos of children whilst on DFCA courses, if any person caught taking photos or videos of children they will be expected to delete them there and then with the coach present. Failure to do so will result in further action.

Coaches

DFCA reserves the right to change specified coaches advertised in our newsletters or website. Alternative coaches will remain experienced and fully qualified within cricket. Please note DFCA often use young coaches as coaching assistants as DFCA aim to develop coaches so a high quality of standard can be met in the near future.

Mobile Phones / Valuables

Any valuable that are brought with the individual on the course such as a mobile phone our brought at their own risk, and DFCA are not liable if any valuables (phones, watches, headphones, tablets etc) that are either damaged or lost.

Lost Property

If any drinks, kit or clothing is left behind then this shall be untouched due to Covid protocols. DFCA are not liable for any loss or damage to any clothing or equipment left behind. It is vital all participants check they have all belongings before departure.

Customer Feedback

DFCA aims to provide the best possible coaching for children and adults, and provide an excellent service to all. DFCA value your feedback and will use it to develop and improve our services. DFCA also encourage you to share any positive experiences of DFCA amongst family and friends.

Complaints Procedure

DFCA are committed to providing a high quality service to all our courses. If you our customer are unhappy with the service provided then please inform us so DFCA can improve its standards.

If you have a complaint, please contact DFCA with the details.

What will happen next?

We will send you a letter/email acknowledging receipt of your complaint within three days of receiving it, enclosing a copy of this procedure.
We will then investigate your complaint. This will normally involve passing your complaint to our Operations or Managing Director, who will review your complaint and open an incident log.
Once we have completed our investigation into your complaint we will contact you by phone to advise you of this and the outcome within seven days.
We will then confirm in writing the outcome as outlined in our telephone conversation within 14 days of the original complaint.