Concussion and Head Injury Policy

Hollier Sports
Last updated: 23 November 2026. Reviewed annually.

If your child is ever seriously injured or unsafe, we will act first to keep them safe, call an ambulance if it's needed, and contact you as soon as we can.

Our Approach

A concussion is a brain injury, and we treat every head knock seriously. Our guiding rule is simple and it isn't up for debate: if in doubt, sit them out. If we think a player might have a concussion, they come off and they don't go back on that day, even if they say they feel fine. We would much rather be cautious about a knock that turns out to be nothing than take a risk with a child's brain.

This policy explains how we recognise and respond to head injuries in our sessions, and what has to happen before a player comes back. It follows the Australian Concussion Guidelines for Youth and Community Sport, produced by the Australian Institute of Sport, and aligns with Football Australia's community guidance. It applies across every program and forms part of your terms of enrolment.

A note on what we are. Our coaches are trained to recognise a suspected concussion and to act on it. We are not doctors, and we don't diagnose concussion or clear a child to return. Those are jobs for a medical professional. Our job is to spot it, take the child out, keep them safe, and get them to you.

If We Suspect a Concussion in a Session

If a player takes a knock to the head, or to the body in a way that could affect the head, and shows any sign of concussion, the first thing we do is take them out for the rest of the session, and we call you. We'll tell you what we saw and arrange for you to collect your child. A suspected concussion always means a call home.

We know you can't always get there straight away. If you're on your way or need a bit of time, that's fine. Your child sits out with us, calm, supervised and watched closely, until you arrive. They don't go back on for the rest of the session, no matter how good they say they feel. Sitting out and waiting is not a sign they've recovered, and a coach, a child or a parent can't override that on the day.

From there, our coaches will also:

  • For after-school programs, keep your child in our care until you or an authorised person collects them. A child with a suspected concussion is never sent home alone.

  • Write the incident up the same day, in line with our Incident Management Policy.

Signs We Watch for

A concussion doesn't always involve being knocked out, and the signs can come on slowly over hours. Our coaches watch for things like a headache, dizziness, looking dazed or blank, slow responses, confusion, nausea, balance problems, or a child who just seems not themselves after a knock.

Some signs mean a child needs urgent medical help, and if we see any of them we call an ambulance on 000 straight away, then call you. These include a worsening or severe headache, repeated vomiting, a seizure, weakness or numbness, slurred speech or double vision, increasing confusion or agitation, or a child who becomes very drowsy or hard to wake. When in doubt, we call.

Getting Your Child Checked

If your child has a suspected concussion, please have them seen by a doctor as soon as you can. A medical assessment is the only way to confirm a concussion and to guide your child's recovery safely. We'll give you what we saw in the session to help that conversation.

In the days afterward, the national guidelines recommend rest first, then a gradual return to everyday things like school and screens before any return to sport, with several checkpoints along the way. Your doctor will guide this. Children and teenagers take longer to recover than adults, so a careful, unhurried approach matters.

Coming Back to Sessions

Before a player who has had a concussion returns to Hollier Sports, all of the following must be in place:

  • Your child is fully symptom-free at rest.

  • Your child has worked back up to activity gradually, in line with the graded return their doctor guides, not straight back into a full session.

  • You give us written clearance from a doctor confirming your child is safe to return to contact training and play.

We also apply the minimum stand-down periods in the national guidelines for players under 19. A child must be symptom-free for at least 14 days before returning to any contact training, and at least 21 days must have passed since the injury before returning to full-contact play, counting the day of the injury as day zero. These are minimums, not targets, and your child's doctor may advise longer.

We know this can feel cautious, especially when a child is keen to get back. That's the point. A second knock before the brain has recovered is exactly the risk these timeframes exist to prevent, and we won't shortcut them.

What We Ask of Families

Please tell us if your child has had a concussion recently, even if it happened somewhere else, at school, in another sport, or at home. If your child is still in a return-to-play period from a concussion elsewhere, we need to know before they take part with us, so we don't put them back into contact too soon.

Our Concussion Lead

Hollier Sports has a nominated concussion lead who oversees how we manage head injuries and return-to-play decisions across our programs. For now that's Daniel Hollier-Smith, and you're welcome to talk to them about any of this.

How This Fits With Our Other Policies

This policy works alongside our Medical, Allergy and Medication Policy and our Incident Management Policy, which cover how we handle and record injuries and emergencies more broadly. You'll find both, with everything else, on our Policies and Important Information page.

Contact

For questions about how we manage head injuries, or about your child's return after a concussion, contact hello@holliersports.com.