Hosts

The host agreement.

This page sets out the deal between Shaping Up and the volunteer hosts who run sessions. It is written to be read, not skimmed past, and every host accepts it before their first session. It is not an employment contract: hosting is volunteering, and hosts are not employees, workers or contractors of Shaping Up. Host as often or as rarely as suits your life.

The role, in three lines

• Turn up when your listing says you will. Someone may have planned their whole day around it.
• Let the group set the pace. The slowest person is not a problem to manage; they are the point.
• Be kind, and keep it welcoming. That is most of the job.
• Keep a tail when the group moves. On walks, runs and rides, you or a helper you name stays with the back the whole way, so the slowest person always has company and nobody ever finishes last.
• Keep it social. If there is a cafe near the end of the route, finish there: the tea, coffee and chat afterwards are half the point.

What we ask of you

• Keep your listing honest: the real meeting point, the real pace, what to bring, and what to expect. No surprises is the whole brand.
• Sessions happen in public places only, never private homes.
• Treat everyone with kindness, respect and inclusivity, whatever their pace, body or background.
• Keep personal things people share with you confidential, unless sharing is needed to keep someone safe.
• Ask permission before photographing anyone, every time.
• Signpost, never advise. If someone shares something hard, listen and point them to proper support. This holds even if you are professionally qualified; at a session you are a host.
• Follow the safeguarding briefing, and raise concerns through the route it gives you.

Host approval is recorded, reviewed and can be withdrawn, with a fair route to appeal. That is not suspicion; it is what lets everyone else trust a session with our name on it.

What you can expect from us

• Vetting and a proper safeguarding briefing before your first session, and backup after anything difficult.
• Your sessions listed and findable, with exactly-what-to-expect details that bring the right people.
• A named contact, and an out-of-hours route while sessions are underway.
• Public liability cover in place before public sessions run.
• An honest answer when something goes wrong on our side.

What we do not provide

• A helpline, for hosts or participants.
• Crisis support or counselling. Samaritans are on 116 123, around the clock.
• Payment or expenses for hosting free sessions, for now; if that changes it will change here first.

The safety model behind all of this lives on the safeguarding page, and what we ask of everyone who attends is in the community agreement.