Who can join?
Age Groups are U/6 (5yrs) to U/14 (13yrs) with a child’s age being determined as at midnight on 30 September each year. Proof of age/birth certificate must be shown for all new junior members. A child must be a minimum of 5yrs of age as at 30 September to join Woonona Stingrays.
U/6 & U/7 age groups join as educational members and are not eligible to participate in swimming events, point scores or carnivals. For safety reasons our Club will only conduct activities for these age groups when there is a ratio of 1 parent helper per 5 children.
U/8 to U/14 join as full members but in accordance with the Surf Life Saving Australia policy they must complete basic proficiency before registration can be accepted. Any child in these age groups wishing to participate in carnivals must also complete the Junior Competition Qualification and Surf Education. Please refer to the Proficiency section for further details.
Important information for parents/guardians
Woonona SLSC runs entirely with volunteer help and we can’t run the Nipper Program without parent/guardian involvement.
It is a condition of registration of Woonona Nippers that:
- at least one parent/guardian remains on the beach AT ALL TIMES while their child participates in the Nipper Program at Woonona Beach and resume responsibility of their child at the conclusion of the day’s events— Nippers is not a child minding program; and
- at least one parent/guardian joins as an Associate Member and it is expected that you will be willing to contribute in some way to the running of Nippers, fundraising or other Club activities.
There are many ways you can assist and they are quite varied, some require Surf Life Saving qualifications such as Water Safety, but most only require a willingness to contribute and may only take as little as 15 minutes. Be assured you won’t be asked to contribute in an area in which you do not have skills.
Particularly with Nippers we can always use help with such things as organizing social activities and Nipper functions, assisting at surf carnivals, BBQ help, producing newsletters, photography or fundraising on SLSA Appeal Day. It is the experience that the more YOU get involved, the more your child will enjoy Nippers.
Membership
The main components of junior membership are:
- an Application for Membership form must be completed for each child and at least one parent/guardian;
- proof of age (eg, birth certificate) of new junior members must be sighted by the Registrar;
- payment of *membership fees for each application;
- the **Club proficiency swim must be successfully completed by each junior (U/8 to U/14) by a date to be advised (please check the club calendar);
- a Prohibited Employment Declaration form must be completed each year as part of adult membership applications;
- a Woonona club skull cap for U/8 to U/14 and green skull cap for U/6 & U/7 is the only compulsory uniform item required to be worn during nipper activities and can be purchased on registration days.
*Note: It is the Club's policy not to refund any membership fees should a child not pass the proficiency or for any other reason.
