Piercing policy

Date 1/9/23
The club has a very simple piercing policy for all athletes who attend our setting across our recreational, development and competitive teams- we are a jewellery and piercing free club. This includes smart watches and medical bracelets.
This is also displayed on our sign by our front door with reminders occasionally on email and social media.

Recreational athletes

(Preschool and cheer for fun)

If a child has had their ears pierced, they can tape them for 6 weeks maximum. Then they must be removed before the start of the session and kept safe by a parent or guardian. The gym will not look after any jewellery and can’t be responsible for it, nor is it hygienic to leave at the gym.
Jewellery left behind will be thrown away.
Athletes are allowed earrings to be taped for 6 weeks maximum due to the level of training they are doing. This is a different matter for development and competitive athletes.

Development and competitive athletes

All jewellery and piercings must be removed.
It is recommended to get any desired piercings done over the summer holidays to allow time to heal and remove before training recommences.
Cheerleading is a contact sport and the level of risk when training at higher levels is significant, both to the athlete with the piercing and those they are training with.
We do not accept taped earrings for development and competitive athletes. These must be pierced in holiday time so they can be removed for training.
Pierced belly buttons can have a longer healing time therefore we have a more detailed procedure. Please note this procedure is only in place after the summer until 6 weeks into the term (giving a maximum time of 12 weeks to heal) if you decide to get a belly piercing late into the summer holidays we do not extend past the 6-week period. The additional safety checks and potential upheaval to training is unfair on coaches and staff and we will not be doing this past the first 6 weeks or at any other times of the season. Medical tape very rarely stays on and can still cause impact injuries. You are welcome to cover the retainer with tape once you have shown staff that it is the retainer and the metal bar is out.

We have updated our policy to use the following 3 options with regard to belly bars:
1. The belly piercing is removed before training and replaced after training. The athlete can train as normal. (This is not hygienic to do at training. Athletes must manage their hygiene independently.) Staff will check to see if the piercing is out.
2. The belly piercing is replaced with a silicone retainer (not plastic, glass or metal) again this needs to be managed outside of training, and staff will check that the silicone retainer is in. This can only be done for a maximum of 6 weeks into the start of term. Athletes can then train as normal.
3. The athlete does not remove the metal bar, sits out from stunts and pyramid and cannot be spotted for tumbling. Even with a temporary replacement athlete, this would cause significant issues for the coach’s plans and have a detrimental effect on the team’s training. Should the coaches deem this to be too difficult to work around (especially if close to competition) a decision would be made whether to remove the athlete from that team until after competition. This will need to be addressed on an individual basis as it will depend on the athlete’s role within the team and whether coaches can adapt their plans to accommodate a temporary athlete. Our decision will be based on what is best for the success of that team.
All facial piercings need to be removed for training. The risk is too high. All piercings have to be removed for competition and this is enforced by the competition staff.

Thank you for your support in this matter. We take safety as our top priority.