A centre full of young people, electricity and personal information carries real responsibilities. Parents trust you with their children and their details. Clear rules, written down and followed every day, protect everyone, including you.
Fire and electrical safety
- Have the wiring checked by a licensed electrician and keep the earthing in good order.
- Keep a suitable fire extinguisher in reach, check its expiry and teach staff how to use it.
- Do not overload extension boards, and unplug equipment that is damaged or smells hot.
- Keep exits clear and doors easy to open from inside.
- Know the switch that cuts the lab power and the emergency numbers for your area.
- Practise a short evacuation with students once in a while.
Child safety
- Check the identity and background of all staff and do not leave a single adult alone with a single child in a closed room.
- Keep lab doors open or glass fronted, and keep the front desk visible to the lab.
- Do not allow staff to contact students privately outside agreed channels, such as through a group that includes a parent.
- Make clear to students that they can tell you anything that makes them uncomfortable, and act at once on what they tell you.
- Keep the contact details of parents and a clear pick up routine, especially for evening batches and for girls.
Discipline and behaviour
Write a short set of rules and put it on the wall: be on time, treat others with respect, no bullying or insulting language, no food or drink near computers, no damaging equipment, no unauthorised downloads or websites. Explain the rules on the first day and apply them evenly to everyone. Correct a student quietly and firmly, never with humiliation or physical punishment. Talk to the parent if a problem repeats.
Online safety in the lab
- Use a filter or a safe DNS setting on the lab network where practical, and watch screens as you walk around.
- Teach students never to share passwords, OTPs or personal photos, and to be careful about links and messages from strangers.
- Tell students about the national cyber crime helpline 1930 and the portal cybercrime.gov.in for reporting online fraud.
- Log out of accounts at the end of each session on shared computers.
Student records and privacy
You hold names, phone numbers, dates of birth, addresses and photos of students, and some are children. Keep them only as long as you need them and only for running the centre. Lock paper files and use a password on the computer that holds records. Do not share a student detail with anyone who has no right to it, and do not post a student photo, name or marks online without the written permission of the student or parent. The law on personal data in India is developing, so ask a professional if you have questions, but the habit of care is right whatever the rules say.
Passwords and the portal
- Set your own centre password at first sign-in and keep it private.
- Hand a student their login slip personally and tell them to change the temporary password.
- Do not keep a list of student passwords on the wall or in a shared file. If a student forgets, reset the password from the student page.
- Log out of the portal on shared computers.
- Tell the head office if you think someone else has your login.
Back up your own records
Keep a copy of important files, such as the student register and accounts, on a second drive or a cloud service that you control, and test restoring it. Protect computers against viruses and keep the operating system up to date.
Write it down
A one page policy for staff, covering behaviour, child safety, photos and complaints, is enough to begin. Review it with your team once a year and after any incident.
This guide is general advice for planning. It states no membership fee and promises no income, student numbers or acceptance of a certificate by any employer. Ask the head office for the current fee and terms in writing, and check local rules and tax with a professional. Use the planner to test your own numbers.