Dance and Martial Arts School Insurance
Dance schools and martial arts clubs have more in common than it first seems. Both teach large numbers of children, both put students through physical activity that carries a real chance of injury, and both spend much of their life in hired halls before some of them take on premises of their own.
What Insurers Look At First
That combination is what insurers look at. Teaching children brings safeguarding questions that adult fitness does not. Contact sparring, lifts and acrobatics bring injury claims. Shows, competitions and gradings bring audiences, venues and travel.
Some associations and governing bodies include insurance with membership. It is worth reading carefully, because it is often written for the individual instructor and may not cover the school as a business, its premises, its staff or its events.
What Dance and Martial Arts School Insurance Covers
Public liability
Injury to students, parents and visitors, and damage to property, arising from your classes, your premises or your events. Halls and schools commonly require £5 million on the certificate.
Professional indemnity
Claims that your teaching caused injury, for example a student hurt attempting a move they were not ready for. For a school teaching technique, this section answers many of the claims made.
Abuse and safeguarding cover
Cover for allegations arising from work with children or vulnerable adults. Many liability policies restrict or exclude abuse claims unless they are declared and specifically included, so this needs to be checked rather than assumed.
Personal accident for students
Some schools and clubs arrange a modest benefit for students injured in class regardless of fault. It can reduce the pressure on a family to make a liability claim against you after a sparring injury.
Contents and equipment
Mats, pads, bags, sound systems, mirrors, costumes and props. Costumes and props for a show can add up to far more than people expect.
Employers' liability
Compulsory at a minimum of £5 million once you employ anyone, including assistant instructors and, depending on how they are engaged, teachers you pay to run classes.
Where The Cover Stops
Wordings differ between insurers, so treat these as the usual position rather than as universal fact. Where one of them matters to you, it is worth checking on your own schedule before you need to.
Full contact and competition fighting
Many policies cover light or controlled contact training but restrict full contact sparring, fight nights or competition bouts unless declared. The style and level of contact need to be described accurately.
Instructors without the right checks
Insurers commonly ask whether everyone working with children has an appropriate DBS check and whether the school has a written safeguarding policy. Gaps here can affect whether abuse cover is available at all.
Membership cover that stops at the instructor
Association insurance is often written for the individual instructor at classes. It may not cover your premises, staff, events or business income. Check what it covers before you rely on it.
Venues and events not mentioned
A show at a theatre, a competition at a sports centre or a summer camp each bring their own requirements. Tell us before the event so the policy and the certificate match.
Trips abroad
Competitions and tours overseas are usually outside a UK policy unless extended.
Teaching Children And What Insurers Ask
Most dance schools and many martial arts clubs teach more children than adults, and insurers ask about it directly. Expect questions about DBS checks for everyone who works with children, a written safeguarding policy, a named safeguarding lead, and how changing rooms, photography and contact outside class are managed.
These are not just insurance questions. They are what parents and venues expect, and a school that can answer them clearly is a better risk. Where the answers are in place, abuse and safeguarding cover is usually available. Where they are not, many insurers will decline it, which leaves the school without cover for the allegation most likely to end it.
Keep the records: DBS certificates and their dates, safeguarding training for staff, incident logs and parental consent for photography. They take little time to keep and are what you will be asked for.
Sparring, Gradings And Injury
Injury is a normal part of martial arts and some dance, and most of it never becomes a claim. The ones that do usually involve a mismatch in size or ability, contact beyond what was agreed, or a student pushed into something they were not ready for.
What helps defend a claim is structure. Matching partners by size, grade and age. Clear rules on contact level for each class. Protective equipment that fits and is checked. A first aider present and an accident book that is actually filled in. Gradings and competitions run to the governing body's rules where there is one.
For dance, the same thinking applies to lifts, acrobatic work and pointe. Progression that is recorded and sensible is your best evidence that a student was taught properly.
Shows, Competitions And Hired Halls
Many schools start in a village hall and stay there for years. The hire agreement usually sets a public liability limit, often £5 million, and may require you to name the hall owner on your certificate. Some hand you responsibility for the room and its equipment while you use it. Read it and match your policy to it.
A show at a local theatre adds an audience, backstage areas full of children, costumes, props and sometimes ticket income. Competitions add travel, supervision away from home and other organisers' venues. Both are well within what insurers cover, but they need to be declared, and the venue will usually want a certificate in advance.
If a show is a significant part of the year's income, ask about cover for the costs if it has to be cancelled for an insured reason.
How To Choose Insurance For A Dance School Or Martial Arts Club
Membership insurance and simple instructor policies suit some clubs well. Others outgrow them without noticing, usually when they take on premises, staff or more children. We are an FCA regulated broker and will not claim to be the best choice for every school. These are the points that decide it.
Does it include abuse and safeguarding cover?
For any school teaching children, this is the first thing to check. If it is excluded or not mentioned, ask why.
Does it describe your style and level of contact?
Controlled contact, full contact, competition fighting, lifts and acrobatics are different risks. The schedule should say what you do.
Does it cover the school, not just the instructor?
Premises, staff, events and income need cover in the school's name. Check whether membership insurance stops at the individual.
Will it satisfy your halls, theatres and competition venues?
Check limits and named parties before each booking, not on the day.
Does it include personal accident for students?
Not essential, but it gives families a route to a payment after an injury that does not involve claiming against you.
Factually, we describe your classes, contact levels and age groups on the policy, check that abuse and safeguarding cover is included where you teach children, arrange cover for premises, equipment, events and staff in the school's name, and set certificate limits to match your venues. We are a broker, so we compare several insurers. Call 02382 000820.
What Moves The Price
Every policy is priced on the business behind it. These are the things that move the premium:
- The style and level of contact, with full contact and competition rated higher
- How many students you teach and what proportion are children
- Whether abuse and safeguarding cover is included
- Whether you have your own premises or hire halls
- Shows, competitions and trips you run
- Staff numbers and your claims record
We are a broker, so we take it to several insurers rather than quoting one. Call 02382 000820 for a quote.
What We Need To Quote
- The disciplines you teach and the contact level in each
- Number of students, age groups and classes per week
- Instructor qualifications and DBS checks
- Your safeguarding policy and named lead
- Where you teach, and any premises you own or lease
- Shows, gradings, competitions and trips planned
- Claims in the last five years
Cover that often goes with this
The gaps we most often find sitting next to this policy.
- Yoga and PilatesStudios, teachers, reformer equipment and hired halls.
- Soft play and activity centresChildren's leisure premises and the supervision questions insurers ask.
- Gyms and sports clubsIf the club runs its own premises with members and equipment.
- Talk to a brokerTell us what you teach and who to, and we will tell you what needs covering.
Common questions
Do I need insurance to run a martial arts club?+
Public liability is not a legal requirement, but almost every hall, school and sports centre will require it before you teach, and parents expect it. Employers' liability is compulsory if you employ anyone. For a club teaching children, abuse and safeguarding cover is one of the most important parts of the policy.
Is my association's insurance enough for my club?+
Sometimes, but check what it covers. Association or governing body insurance is often written for the individual instructor at classes. It may not cover premises you lease, staff you employ, shows or competitions you organise, or the school's income. Read the policy summary and compare it with what the club actually does.
Does dance school insurance cover shows and performances?+
It can, but the show needs to be declared. A performance adds an audience, a theatre that will want a certificate, backstage supervision of children, and costumes and props. Tell us before the show so the cover and the certificate match the venue's requirements.
Are sparring injuries covered?+
Usually, if the level of contact is described accurately on the policy. Many policies cover controlled contact training but restrict full contact or competition fighting unless it is declared. Matching partners carefully and keeping an accident book helps if a claim is made.
Who is the best insurer for a dance school or martial arts club?+
There is no single best insurer. A small club in a village hall and a school with its own studio, staff and shows need different cover. Judge any option on whether it includes abuse and safeguarding cover, describes your contact level, covers the school rather than just the instructor and meets your venues' requirements. As a broker we compare several insurers on those points.
Do insurers require DBS checks for children's classes?+
Most insurers ask whether everyone working with children has an appropriate DBS check and whether the school has a written safeguarding policy. The answers affect whether abuse and safeguarding cover is offered. Keep certificates and training records where you can produce them.
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