A call sheet can tell a chaperone where to be and when. It rarely gives them the whole picture. Before a child arrives, the chaperone needs a clear account of the work, the people responsible for it and the arrangements around the child.
This guide is for productions in England where an approved chaperone has been appointed for a licensed performance or activity. Parent supervision, supervision by the child’s ordinary teacher and work under a Body of Persons Approval can operate differently. Confirm the route with the relevant local authority rather than assuming that one arrangement fits every production.
Start with the licence and named responsibility
Record which local authority issued the licence, who holds it and which conditions affect the day. Make the current licence and any relevant local authority instructions available through the production’s approved route.
The Department for Education’s published advice for England says the person responsible for organising, producing or running the work should apply for the licence, becomes the licence holder when it is issued and is accountable for its conditions. The same advice says someone with authority to make or change arrangements must be legally accountable for the safeguarding arrangements.
That person should be named in the briefing. A chaperone should not have to work out who can approve a change while a child is waiting.
Explain what the child will actually do
Schedule 2 of the England Regulations requires a licence application to describe the performance or activity and what the child will be asked to do. It also covers the place, dates, expected duration and rehearsal arrangements.
Turn that information into a short, usable summary. Include the scenes or activities planned, the locations involved, any costume or make-up calls, and the likely movement between spaces. If the work changes, tell the chaperone before the child is moved or called. A revised running order is only useful if the people caring for the child receive it.
Give the day a shape
The briefing should map the child’s day from arrival to release. Show the expected sign-in time, rehearsals or performance calls, education arrangements where relevant, planned rest and meal periods, the likely finish and the journey away from the venue.
This is not a replacement for checking the licence, the England Regulations or local conditions. It is the working version that helps the chaperone compare what was approved with what is happening. If a delay changes the plan, update the chaperone and the person authorised to make decisions.
Introduce the people and the spaces
Regulation 15 describes the approved chaperone’s role as having care and control of the child and safeguarding, supporting and promoting the child’s wellbeing during the licensed work and any associated stay away from home.
A brief site walk makes that role easier to carry out. Show the chaperone the holding area, toilets, dressing facilities, teaching space where relevant, first-aid point, exits and any route the child is expected to use. Introduce the production contact who can change the plan, the safeguarding contact and the people responsible for first aid, education, costume and transport where those roles apply.
Include people’s names, not only their job titles, because titles are easy to lose track of on a busy day. Add a mobile number or radio channel where the production’s communication procedure allows it.
Agree arrivals, movement and release
Set out where the child will be received, who will bring them in and how their release at the end of the day will be confirmed. Include the production’s process for checking a late change to an authorised collector. Agree who will tell the chaperone when the child is needed and who, if anyone, will accompany the child between controlled areas.
These are practical production controls, not a universal statutory handover script. Follow the licence, the relevant council’s requirements and the production’s safeguarding procedure. Keep personal information within the approved process rather than adding it to a widely shared call sheet.
Walk through the emergency plan
The Health and Safety Executive says an event emergency plan should cover matters including raising the alarm, summoning emergency services, first aid, incident control and evacuation. Its event safety guidance also stresses clear roles and responsibilities.
Tell the chaperone what the alarm sounds like, where to take the child, who leads an evacuation and how children will be accounted for and reunited with the correct adult. Keep the safeguarding reporting route clear as well. An emergency plan and a safeguarding procedure solve different problems, even though both may be needed during the same incident.
A short pre-call check
- Has the licensing or approval route been confirmed?
- Does the chaperone have the relevant licence conditions and local instructions?
- Is the licence holder or other authorised decision-maker named?
- Is the child’s planned work described in plain language?
- Are the current schedule, education arrangements and travel plan clear?
- Have arrival, movement and release procedures been agreed?
- Has the chaperone seen the spaces the child will use?
- Are first-aid, emergency and safeguarding contacts easy to reach?
- Is there a simple way to record and communicate changes?
Keep the briefing short enough to use, but make sure it matches the licence, the venue and the work in front of the child that day. If something is uncertain, pause and check with the licence holder or relevant local authority before relying on an assumption.
Chaperone Collective’s resources hub can help with further reading and official links. Our signposting page explains where peer support stops and official guidance, licence conditions and safeguarding procedures must take priority.