As a responsible coach you will:
Respect the rights, dignity and worth of every athlete and treat everyone equally, regardless of background or ability
Place the welfare and safety of the athlete above the development of performance
Encourage and guide athletes to accept and take responsibility for their own behaviour and performance
Be appropriately qualified and update your licence and education as and when required by UK Athletics
Ensure that the activities you guide or advocate are appropriate for the age, maturity, experience and ability of the individual athlete
At the outset, clarify with athletes (and where appropriate their parents or carers) exactly what is expected of them and what athletes are entitled to expect from you
Never try to recruit, either overtly or covertly, athletes who are already receiving coaching. If approached by an athlete receiving coaching, refer immediately to the coach currently providing coaching support
Co-operate fully with other colleagues (e.g. other coaches, officials, team managers, sport scientists, doctors, physiotherapists, governing body staff) in the best interests of the athlete
Consistently promote positive aspects of the sport (e.g. fair play) and never condone rule violations or the use of prohibited or age-inappropriate substances
Consistently display high standards of behaviour and appearance
In addition, as a responsible athletics coach you must:
Develop appropriate working relationships with athletes (especially under 18s), based on mutual trust and respect. In particular, a coach will not exert undue influence to obtain personal benefit or reward;
Strictly maintain a clear boundary between friendship and intimacy with athletes and not conduct inappropriate relationships with athletes. Relationships with athletes can cause significant problems for other team members and can fracture teams, raising concerns of favouritism, or even of victimisation, should the relationship later end.
However, due to the very special relationship between coaches and athletes:
You must not allow an intimate personal relationship to develop between yourself and any athlete under the age of 18. Any violation of this could result in a coach licence being withdrawn or restrictions being imposed
on it under condition 6 below;
It is also strongly recommended that you do not allow intimate personal relationships to develop between yourself and athletes (coached or supervised by you) who are aged 18 and over
In addition to the above Code of Conduct coaches should follow the following guidelines to ensure that they work within the best coaching practice. Coaches should:
Never do something for an athlete that they can do for themselves
Avoid critical language or actions, such as sarcasm, that undermine an athlete's self-esteem
Not spend time alone with a young athlete unless clearly in view of others
Avoid taking a young athlete alone in your car
Never invite a young athlete alone to your home
Never share a bedroom with a child
Always explain why and ask for consent before touching an athlete
Work in same-sex pairs when supervising changing areas
Ensure that parents/carers know about and have approved in advance if taking a young athlete away from the usual training venue
Respect the right of young athletes to an independent life outside athletics
Challenge inappropriate behaviour or language by others
Report any accidental injury, distress or misunderstanding or misinterpretation. A brief written report of such incidents should be submitted to the WO as soon as possible, and parents/carers notified
Report any suspected misconduct by other coaches or athletics personnel