We have a similar policy to the MoBo bicycle Co-op. 16 and younger must be accompanied by an adult for the same reasons listed below. Also, if someone is around to mentor the youth for that session, then they can stay. It also depends on who is staffing and their judgement.
(I'm really interested in learning more about kids day. Ellie, could you share more with me about what that looks like and how you get youth to participate?)
Although i just found this old policy sign that we have, that may be outdated:
Free Ride Youth Access Policy
Free Ride offers youth programs through other
organizations.
Open Shop, Volunteer Night, and Classes require a level of maturity to operate
smoothly for all users, and unfortunately are generally not designed for young people. It
is a working shop and respectful, safe behavior that follows the Code of Conduct is
important.
Free Ride enforces a strict Youth Access Policy for ALL users under the age of 18, due
to several instances over the years of shop policies being violated by unsupervised
young people.
If you are 18*21, you need an ID with your age on it to be allowed adult access to Free
Ride. A Staffer may ask for proof of age of any Shop user.
Youth under the age of 18 must also do the following:
●
Your first time in the shop, you must have a permission slip completed by your
parent or guardian. When you turn in the signed permission slip, a staffer will have
a brief conversation with the guardian (either on the phone or in person, no
voicemail allowed) before permitting you access to the shop.
●
You must always be with a guardian 21 or older to enter Free Ride. Your guardian
must remain with you at all times while using the shop. Guardians will be held
responsible for the behavior of the youth they accompany.
●
With a staffer's help, you must log 3 hours in your member log FIRST, before
earning a bike or parts from Free Ride. Your youth membership log will be stored
with your permission slip in the Youth Membership binder.
●
Be aware that staffers may make note of your behavior on your log. Respectful
behavior earns you more privileges at Free Ride!
Andrea
Free Ride Bicycle Project
Pittsburgh, pa
From: MoBo Bicycle Co-op <mobobicyclecoop@gmail.com>
To: The Think Tank <thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org>
Sent: Tuesday, May 15, 2012 3:20 PM
Subject: Re: [TheThinkTank] Minimum age for volunteer members
Our volunteers for regular shop hours must be 16 or over, unless they have a parental waiver and the mechanic on duty is willing to take responsibility and find a mentor for the child. We are an open shop based co-op so our members work on bikes with a variety of tools, sometimes without the supervision of a mechanic so we don't want anything to happen to a kid. Like Wanda said, having staff being able and willing to take responsibility makes a difference to ensure the child's safety.
However, we do run a kids day program and because of the way that program is run, we let kids volunteer as young as 8, mostly working the front desk. During Kids Day, all a kid needs is a parental waiver and no child is allowed to work on a bike without a mechanic.
Ellie Nava-Jones
MoBo Bicycle Co-op
On Sun, May 13, 2012 at 7:06 PM, Wanda Pelegrina Caldas
<wanda@communitycycles.org> wrote:
Youth under 16 must be accompanied by an adult, at all times. We ask they bring their own adult. We might have all kindsa stuff at the shop, but babysitters are not something we have in stock.
We do have a youth earn-a-bike program separate from our open shop. Youth 10-16 can participate without an adult, but their parent must sign a waiver.
We chose this age range b/c we find it's when kids are (usually) ready to take part, pay attention, learn. They are capable of using the tools safely or with little guidance and generally don't run around the shop using the tools as toys.
We do occasionally get younger kids who start out super engaged, but their kids and have shorter attention spans. It turns into a situation where we end up babysitting or investing lotsa time in keeping them engaged, focused, on task.
It's great to work with younger kids if you have the staff, the programs and structure, but when it's super busy and already stretched a little thin, it's too much work to make sure that kids 10 and under safe and outta everyone's hair.
Wanda - Community Cycles, Boulder, Colorado
Wanda Pelegrina Caldas
Community Cycles, Boulder's only non-profit bike shop, serves all your bike commuting needs.
Use our secure online donation form to become a member, today.
Thanks!!
From:
paul@thebicycletree.orgTo:
thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org
Date: Sun, 13 May 2012 15:41:55 -0700
Subject: [TheThinkTank] Minimum age for volunteer members
Hello,
We are writing our bylaws and seeking to define age minimums for volunteer members of our organization. Our structure is going to distinguish between voting and non-voting members, based on hours volunteered. We have our minds made up pretty well that the minimum age for voting members should be 16, with perhaps a provision where exceptions can be made by volunteer vote. We are less certain about defining the minimum age for non-voting members, who may attend volunteer meetings (which are held on weeknights) but not vote, and would typically volunteer alongside people who are mostly 25-45 years old.
Anyone under 18 needs the signature of a parent or guardian to volunteer.
Perhaps relevant is that we are still operating on a mobile basis - setting up in regular locations outdoors.
I think keeping that minimum at 14 would avoid any issue with labor laws, but perhaps 16 would be better. What age limits, if any, do you employ, and why?
Thank you,
Paul
The Bicycle Tree
P.O. Box 11293
Santa Ana, CA 92711
http://www.thebicycletree.org
info@thebicycletree.org
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--
MoBo Bicycle Cooperative
a project of The Village Green Foundation
1415 Knowlton St.
Cincinnati, OH
www.mobobicyclecoop.org
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