THE IRISH PONY CLUB
CODE OF CONDUCT
The
Irish Pony Club is committed to providing the best possible environment for all
young people involved in the sport.
Members deserve to be given enjoyable, safe sporting opportunities, free
from abuse of any kind. These members
have rights, which must be respected, and responsibilities that they must
accept. The Irish Pony Club also has a
duty to care for volunteers working with its members on behalf of the
organisation.
Members
are entitled to:
Be treated with dignity and
respect.
Be safe and to feel safe.
To be protected from
bullies.
To say No.
To be listened to.
To be believed.
To be happy, have fun and
enjoy sport.
To experience competition
and the desire to win as a positive and healthy outcome of striving for best
performance.
To have a voice in the
running of their branch.
Members
should always:
Avoid
behavior, conduct or language that is unseemly or offensive, or conduct
injurious to the character and aspirations of the Irish Pony Club or the
interests of its members.
Treat all Instructors,
managers, selectors, competition organisers and officials with respect.
Treat their pony / horse
with care and consideration.
Take responsibility for their
own safety and the safety of others.
Abide by the Safety rules and regulations of the Irish Pony Club, in
particular wear the protective riding hats, back protectors and correct
footwear as prescribed by the IPC.
Currently approved riding hats: PAS 015, EN 1384, ASTM F1163.
Take care that their tack is
in good condition and safe for riding.
Abide by the rules set down
by their District Commissioner and Branch Committee and managers when traveling
to away events.
Members
should never:
Use unfair or bullying
tactics to gain advantage over other members or officials.
Use bullying tactics to
isolate another member.
Make false allegations
against other members or adults.
Use drugs, alcohol or
tobacco at Pony Club activities.
* * * * * * * * * * *
IRISH PONY CLUB
GUIDELINES FOR PARENTS:
The
Pony Club is a world wide, voluntary youth organisation, founded over sixty
years ago to:
Encourage young people to ride and to learn to enjoy all kinds of sport
connected with horses and riding.
To provide instruction in riding and horsemanship, and to instil in
members the proper care of their animals.
To promote the highest ideals of sportsmanship, citizenship and loyalty,
thereby cultivating strength of character and self-discipline.
The Irish Pony Club is committed to providing a safe and fair
environment for all members. Our first
priority is the welfare of Members and we are committed to providing an
environment, which will allow participants to perform to their best ability,
free from bullying and intimidation.
The Irish Pony Club also has a duty to care for volunteers working with
young people on behalf of the organisation.
The
contribution of parents in this work is highly appreciated especially within
the Bray Hunt Branch. As riding is a
high-risk sport we appeal to parents to help us by observing the following
rules:
At all Pony Club activities the District Commissioner is the person in
charge. In his/her absence the
Secretary is in charge and may enlist the help of the Senior Instructor if
needed. If neither can attend, the
District Commissioner will appoint an official representative who will be
responsible for the activity.
Only hats marked with: PAS 015 (with BSI Kitemark or SEI), EN 1384 (with BSI Kitemark or SEI) and ASTM F1163 (with SEI) are approved for
Pony Club activities. Crash helmets
must be worn for cross-country riding.
Hats must be worn with chinstrap correctly fastened at all times when
mounted. The hat should fit the head
firmly but comfortably. If a hat
suffers a severe blow then it should be discarded and replaced.
Body protectors must be worn for all jumping (Show jumping and cross country).
Please check all tack for
safety and fit regularly, paying particular attention to
stitching and places where the leather is in regular contact with metal
parts. Also please check the length of
the girth – there should be at lease three holes spare on each side, above and
below the buckles. These are always
checked at rallies before riding as a matter of course, but if found to be ill
fitting or unsafe it may be that the member will not be able to ride.
Parents are always welcome at all Pony Club activities but please stay
20 yards back while riding is in progress.
Please do not distract and confuse your child by talking to them or
attracting their attention in any way whilst they are in the care of their instructor. If a parent cannot attend a rally/training
session please designate an adult who will be present, to be responsible for
your child in the event of an accident.
All points of discussion, queries, problems and suggestions should be
brought directly to the District Commissioner.
Instructors are briefed to refer parents to the District Commissioner or
Secretary or acting official under all circumstances.
At the end of a riding session all riders will dismount, run up their
stirrups and await their instructor’s directions. With the exception of the very young group who will remain
mounted and under the supervision of their instructor until ponies are safely
loaded or tied up. NO ONE WILL RIDE
AFTER THIS TIME. This includes siblings
and friends etc.
Only paid up members of the Pony Club, Instructors or nominated helpers
may ride at Pony Club activities.
At the finish of a rally (or finish time at camp), the parents will
please collect their children promptly as they are then officially the parent’s
responsibility and history has shown this is one of the high-risk times for
members and their ponies/horses.
If you bring unmounted siblings, friends or relatives to a rally please
ensure that they are properly supervised and where appropriate understand the
above rules of safety.
Pony Club Tests: The District Commissioner with
advice from the Instructor will decide when a member is ready to take the Pony
Club Standards of Efficiency Tests.
Team Selection: is the responsibility of the District Commissioner. He/she will appoint a Selector’s Panel for
the purpose of selecting teams. Any
person who has an interest in a competitor should stand down for that
particular selection.
Parents help is needed with
the running of Pony Club activities i.e.
finding venues for Pony Club rallies, camp and competitions, Fund-raising,
Building/Maintaining cross country course, Maintaining show jumps / Mounted
Games equipment, Stewarding fences etc. when we host competitions and most
important with Catering at rallies, camp and for competitions.
Be a role model for your
child and maintain the highest standards of conduct when interacting with
children, other parents, with officials and organisers.
Encourage your child to
abide by the rules of the Irish Pony Club.
Parents should support all
efforts to remove abusive and bullying behavior in all its forms:
Child to Child – includes physical
aggression, verbal bullying, intimidation, or isolation.
Adult to Child – includes the use of repeated
gestures or expressions of a threatening or
intimidating nature, or any comment
intended to degrade a child.
Adult
to Adult – includes verbal aggression towards other adults in order to
achieve a
beneficial
outcome for self or own child.
Child
to Adult - includes repeated
gestures or expressions of a threatening or
intimidating nature by an
individual child or a group of children.
Please
find enclosed Application for membership form and
in the case of existing members a Renewal form. Parents and members are required to sign these forms agreeing
to abide by the rules of the Irish Pony Club.
Please sign and return to the Treasurer of your Branch with the
appropriate subscription fee