Check if legislation or government guidelines in your country have nationally recommended supervision ratios. If there is no specific guidance on this in your country, the following adult-to-child ratios are recommended to help keep children safe:
- when working with children between six and eight years of age, a ratio of one adult to 16 children should be adhered to.
- when working with children between nine and twelve years of age, a ratio of one adult to 20 children should be adhered to.
If older learners are helping to supervise younger children, only those aged 18 or over should be included as adults when calculating adult to child ratios. All activities should always be planned to involve at least two adults. This is recommended safeguarding best practise.
The following factors should also be taken into consideration in deciding how many adults are required to safely supervise children:
- the number of children involved in the football activity.
- the age, maturity, and football experience of the children.
- whether any of the members of staff, volunteers or children have a learning or physical disability or special requirements.
- whether any of the children have challenging behaviour.
- the hazards associated with the football activity.
- the hazards associated with the environment.
- the level of qualification and experience of the members of staff and volunteers.
- the full programme of football activities.