How we treat each other

What we are trying to make

A room where a young person can try something, get it wrong in front of other people, and want to try again. Everything below exists to protect that.

What we expect of makers

• Look after each other. No put-downs, no exclusion, no commenting on anyone’s body, background or ability. Teasing that one person finds funny and another doesn’t is not teasing, it is the thing we are stopping.
• Ask before you touch someone else’s work. Half-built projects are precious. Hands off unless you’re invited in.
• Use tools the way you were shown. Some of what we use can cut, burn or carry current. If you haven’t been shown, ask. There is no penalty for asking and a real one for guessing.
• Tell me if something is wrong. A broken tool, a hurt finger, a conversation that made you uncomfortable. Early and small beats late and large.
• Help put the space back. We pack down together. The next group deserves the room we’d want.

Photography and sharing work

I sometimes photograph projects to show what sessions look like. I ask permission from a parent or guardian in writing before any photograph of a young person is published, and you can decline or withdraw that permission at any time without it affecting your place in a session. Makers can always ask me not to photograph their work.

Devices and the internet

Sessions use the internet for research, reference and publishing work. Makers stay on task and on sites relevant to what they’re building. I don’t install monitoring software on anyone’s personal device; instead we work in shared space where screens are visible, which does the same job with more trust and less surveillance.

What you can expect of me

• I hold a current Working with Children Check and a current First Aid certificate, and will show either on request.
• I will not be alone and out of sight with a single young person. Sessions run in open, visible spaces.
• I will tell you promptly if your child is hurt, upset, or involved in something that needed my intervention.
• I will take a concern seriously the first time you raise it, and tell you what I’ve done about it.
• I will keep what I learn about your family private, except where I am legally required to report a risk of harm to a child.

What we expect of parents and guardians

• Stay contactable for the length of the session, and let me know in advance about anything that helps me support your young person well: medical needs, access needs, triggers, or simply what a hard day looks like for them.
• Collect on time, and tell me ahead of time if someone other than you is collecting.
• Raise concerns with me directly and early. I would much rather hear it from you than not hear it.

If something goes wrong

Tell me, in person or at info@hellomaker.org. I will acknowledge it within two days and tell you what I intend to do.

Depending on what has happened, that might mean a conversation, a change to how a session runs, asking someone to sit out, or asking someone not to return. Behaviour that puts another person’s safety at risk ends a session immediately, and I will call a parent.

Where I believe a child is at risk of significant harm, I am obliged to report it to the relevant NSW authority, and I will. If a concern is about me, you are entitled to go straight to the OCG or the police without raising it with me first.

Access and inclusion

Neurodivergent makers, makers with disabilities, and makers who need to move, fidget, step out or work in silence are all welcome. Tell me what helps and I will work with it. If cost is the barrier, say so. Email me and we will have a quiet conversation about it.

Last reviewed: draft pending sign-off. Questions to info@hellomaker.org.