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The Serious Bit

  • Milers and other Participants

    If you are taking part in the Sainsbury’s Sport Relief Mile, or any other activity for Sport Relief, please remember to:

    • Prepare and train properly for your activity.
    • Warm up and cool down properly before and after an event.
    • Seek medical advice if you have any doubts about your ability to take part in any activity.
    • Take particular care if you are undertaking intensive physicalactivity of a type, or at a level, which is new to you.
    • Always be aware of the safety of other competitors, spectators and the general public.
    • If you’re planning on taking part in an ‘extreme’ sporting activity, consider whether you need professional instructors or guides to help you.
    • Flagship Miles are organised by Comic Relief, other Miles are organised independently by local organisations in support of Sports Relief

    By taking part in the Mile you agree that:

    • your name and any image of you taken during the event may be used in any publicity and promotional materials for Comic Relief, and in any TV and other media coverage of the event,
    • your entry fees are non-refundable, and
    • Comic Relief does not accept responsibility or liability for any loss or damage, or for any death or personal injury, arising out of participation in the Mile, including liability as a result of negligence (except death or personal injury caused by Comic Relief’s negligence).

    The following rules and guidelines apply to children (under 16) who wish to take part in the Mile

    • Children must have their parent or guardian’s permission to enter.
    • If you are under 16, please ask your parent or guardian to complete the Mile registration process for you.
    • If you are registering someone under 16, you must be their parent or guardian, or their parent or guardian must have given permission for their child to enter and have confirmed that they have read this page and the declaration at the end of the Mile registration process.
    • Children must be accompanied by a responsible adult at the Mile.
    • Parents or guardians who wish to allow their children to use a Sport Relief Giving Page or to do other fundraising should read the Safety Tips for Parents and the Online Safety Tips, below.  

  • Organisers

    If you are organising your own Mile, or any other activity for Sport Relief, please consider the following guidelines (please note that organisers of official Sainsbury’s Sport Relief Mile events should consult their Organiser’s Manual for advice):

    • Please be safe! Whilst we really appreciate your support, Comic Relief is not responsible for organising, supervising or hosting your activity. All activities, and participation in them, are at the organisers’ and participants’ own risk.
    • Planning - you should always draw up a plan well in advance.
    • Risk assessment – you should conduct a risk assessment to ensure that you have proper plans for the safety of participants, including contingency plans in case of emergencies or extreme weather.
    • Route/location – make sure your event and any routes are suitably located, and that you have all the permissions and licences you need – you might want to contact your local council about this.
    • Supervision – make sure you provide suitable supervisors or marshals, and that they stand out - this might involve wearing armbands or high visibility jackets.
    • Medical assistance – consider what medical facilities are needed at your event (from a simple first aid box to a qualified first aider). Your local St John Ambulance may be able to help with advice and assistance.
    • Preparation – think about any special training or equipment that may be necessary for your event.
    • Participants – make sure your participants are fully briefed about the event, including any risks, fitness requirements and special equipment or clothing that may be required.
    • Children – always make sure children and young people have their parent or guardian’s permission to take part, and are properly supervised during the activity. You should also consider carrying out appropriate background checks if adults are to have unsupervised access to children and young people.
    • Insurance – consider what insurance cover you need for your activity. Please note that Comic Relief cannot provide insurance for your activity.

  • Safety Tips for Parents

    If you are thinking of letting your child get involved in fundraising, whether it’s selling cakes, washing cars, or asking you to sponsor them to do their homework, here are a few safety tips to keep in mind:

    • Please make sure your children understand that they need your permission before they start any fundraising.
    • We recommend that children under the age of 16 who are involved in fundraising are properly supervised by a responsible adult.
    • We recommend that children don’t approach strangers to ask them for money or to get involved in their fundraising activity.
    • Please always take care when publishing any information about children, in particular their surname, school name, home address, or photo.
    • Always check with other parents before you involve their children in fundraising, especially if their activity is being photographed or filmed.
    • We recommend that an adult looks after any money that is collected, and is responsible for paying the money to us. We don’t recommend that children pay us money directly or send us their details.
    • The Sport Relief Giving Pages are only for fundraisers aged 16 or over. You can set up a page on behalf of your children, but please enter an adult’s details. Always consider what personal details you make available online. Please see our Online Safety Tips for more details.
    • Please read our privacy policy for information on how we take care of personal details.

  • Donors and Sponsors

    • If you wish to donate to Comic Relief or sponsor anyone for Sport Relief, please note that your donation or sponsorship is non-refundable. If you sponsor someone to attempt a Mile or any other activity for Sport Relief, your sponsorship is not conditional on the Mile or activity being completed.

  • Fundraising Dos and Don’ts

    If you are getting sponsored to do the Mile, or doing any other fundraising for Sport Relief, please make sure you stay legal:

    • Please be safe! Whilst we really appreciate your support, Comic Relief is not responsible for organising, supervising or hosting your fundraising. All fundraising is at the organisers’ and participants’ own risk.
    • Please make sure your fundraising materials (e.g. posters) include the line: ‘In support of Sport Relief, an initiative of Comic Relief, registered charity 326568 (England/Wales); SC039730 (Scotland)’.
    • Your fundraising materials must not suggest that you represent the charity, only that you are fundraising in support of us.
    • If you are a business and you are fundraising by selling goods or services, or by running an event or promotion, the law requires you to have a Fundraising Agreement with us. You may also need a Fundraising Agreement if you are a member of the public and you are deducting any amounts (e.g. costs or expenses) from your fundraising. You can enquire about getting a Fundraising Agreement by emailing fundraising@sportrelief.com or by writing to us at ‘Sport Relief, The Fundraising Team, 1st Floor, 89Albert Embankment, London, SE1 7TP’.
    • We don’t advise that you collect money in a public place or door to door. If you do choose to do so, you’ll need your own licence from your local authority (you should find details about this on your local authority’s website).
    • If children (under 16) are involved in fundraising in any way, please make sure that they have permission from their parent or guardian, and are properly supervised by a responsible adult. Children should never approach strangers about fundraising. There are more Safety Tips for Parents set out below.  
    • If you are planning any type of lottery (such as a raffle, tombola or sweepstake), please be aware that there are strict rules about what you can do. For England, Wales and Scotland, the Gambling Commission publishes guidance on lotteries at www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk.In Northern Ireland, the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action publishes a good practice guide at www.nicva.org.
    • You should always consider whether you need appropriate insurance cover for your fundraising activity. If necessary, carry out a risk assessment and make sure participants are fully briefed about the activity.
    • For more information on fundraising, you can visit the Institute of Fundraising’s website at www.how2fundraise.org.

  • Online Safety Tips

    If you are using the Sport Relief Giving Pages, here are a few safety tips to keep in mind:

    • A good password is an important part of staying safe online. It prevents others from using your account. Choose a password that is hard to guess but easy to remember.
    • Please give careful consideration before posting any personal details, such as your full name, address, phone number, or photographs as they may be visible to all users.
    • You should not post personal information about anyone else without their permission. This includes photographs or films of other people. 
    • Please give special consideration before posting information, photographs or films of children. You should have the express permission of their parent or guardian, and should consider whether it’s appropriate to post the material at all. See our Safety Tips for Parents for more details.
    • If you see any material on the Giving Pages which you find offensive, please contact us, and we will investigate it.
    • Please note that content on the Giving Pages is not checked by Comic Relief before being posted. Your child’s Giving Page is in your control and you should take care that children don’t upload too much information about themselves, particularly contact and location information.
    • Giving Pages for under 16s are set to ‘private’, so will not appear in internet search engine results. However, your child can email the direct link to their friends and family who may send it on to increase your child’s sponsorship potential.
    • We recommend you read and understand our privacy policy which applies to the information collected on both Mile registration and the Giving Pages.
    • If you’re worried about your child having their own Giving Page, you can create a joint page instead which you can enjoy together.
    • For more general information and help about keeping safe online, visit thinkuknow.co.uk

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