Every child has the right to play and take part in a wide range of activities (UNCRC - Article 31). Parents and carers play a pivotal role in encouraging and supporting this right to participation, success and fun, especially within cycling. Parents and Carers can take simple steps to help encourage and support their child’s participation, such as:

• Speak with your child about their involvement in cycling.
• Understand why they are participating in cycling.
• Talk to them about why you, as a parent/carer, want them to be involved in cycling.
• Set out some shared goals and create a shared understanding of your child’s participation in cycling.
• Understand your child’s ambitions in cycling.
• Encourage them to participate in a fair manner within the rules of the sport.
• Remember, it is your child’s sporting experience - not yours.

The video above has been created by the NSPCC to help identify how parents/carers can be involved within their child’s sport and encourage them to enjoy participating.

Scottish Cycling is fully committed to safeguarding the wellbeing of children and young people in its care. We recognise the responsibility that we must promote safe practice to protect children and young people from harm, poor practice and abuse. We understand that your involvement in your child’s sporting life as a parent/carer is important and with this in mind, Scottish Cycling has its own wellbeing & protection policy which sets out the commitment, expectations, standards and procedures within the sport to ensure that children and young people are safe when they are involved cycling. This policy can be found here.

Scottish Cycling also share the core principles and commitments of British Cycling and work with them to improve safeguarding standards across the whole sport. British Cycling’s Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy can be found here.

How to raise a concern

Should you as a parent or carer have a concern regarding your child, another child involved cycling or have a concern regarding the conduct of an adult towards a child, it is important that this is reported as soon as possible. You can either:

• Speak with your club’s Wellbeing & Protection Officer.
• Contact the Wellbeing & Protection Officer here at Scottish Cycling at wpo@scotttishcycling.org.uk
• Contact Children1st Child Wellbeing and Protection in Sport service on cwps@children1st.org.uk or 0141 419 1156

If you have an immediate concern for the safety and wellbeing of a child or young person, please contact Police Scotland on 101, 999 in an emergency, or children’s social care in your area without delay

Minimum Operating Standards for Clubs

Scottish Cycling has introduced Minimum Operating Standards (MOS) for clubs who affiliated with the governing body so that they have all the correct policies and procedures in place. Putting these MOS in place will lead to a safe and supported operating environment to protect children and young people involved in the sport.

More information on these standards can be found here.

Safeguarding in Sport's 10 questions

Safeguarding in Sport, a function of Scotland’s National Children’s Charity – Children1st, have developed a parent’s guide which outlines 10 questions that parents can ask any sports club so they are able to familiarise themselves with child protection processes within that club, reduce any anxieties and build confidence that their child will be safe and enjoy the benefits of sport, including cycling.

Parents should look to answer these questions before their child gets directly involved in cycling. To access this guide, please click here.

We also provide more information and guidance for parents/carers regarding the use of lone operators withn the sport and the checks that should be undertaken. This information can be found here.