HYGIENE & MAT SAFETY POLICY

At Northsouth Jiu Jitsu, maintaining a clean, hygienic and safe training environment is a shared responsibility.

Due to the close-contact nature of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and wrestling, good hygiene practices are essential to protecting our members and training partners.

Skin infections such as ringworm, staph, impetigo and other bacterial, fungal and viral infections can spread through direct skin contact and contaminated training surfaces. The following guidelines help minimise these risks and maintain a safe environment for everyone.

1. Personal Hygiene

All members are expected to:

  • Shower immediately after every training session. An antibacterial or antimicrobial body wash is recommended.

  • Wash all training gear after every session, including gis, rash guards, shorts and spats.

  • Never re-wear unwashed training gear.

  • Wash or sanitise hands before and after training.

  • Keep personal hygiene items, towels and water bottles to yourself.

  • Keep fingernails and toenails short and clean.

  • Keep cuts and grazes clean and securely covered.

2. Skin Infections & Illness

To help prevent the spread of infections:

  • Members must not train with suspected or confirmed contagious skin infections, including ringworm, impetigo, staph infections or cold sores.

  • Any unexplained rash, sore or skin lesion should be assessed by a healthcare professional before returning to training.

  • Members must notify a coach if they develop a suspected skin infection after attending training.

  • Members should stay home when experiencing a contagious illness.

  • Open wounds must be securely covered. If they cannot be safely covered, members must sit out.

Members may only return to training when the infection is no longer considered contagious and they meet appropriate medical and return-to-sport guidance.

3. Training Area & Equipment

  • Footwear must never be worn on the training mats.

  • Appropriate footwear must be worn when walking to bathrooms and outside designated training areas.

  • Shared training equipment must be kept clean and sanitised appropriately.

  • Equipment contaminated with blood or bodily fluids must be removed from use until properly cleaned and disinfected.

  • Training must stop if blood or bodily fluids come into contact with the mats. The affected area must be appropriately cleaned and disinfected before training resumes.

4. Our Cleaning Standards

We take the cleanliness of our facility seriously and maintain regular cleaning and hygiene procedures.

Our cleaning practices include:

  • Regular cleaning and disinfection of training mats using professional-grade products suitable for our mat surfaces.

  • Fresh mop heads daily.

  • Regular cleaning of shared equipment and high-touch surfaces.

  • Routine cleaning of bathrooms and shared facilities.

  • Appropriate cleaning and disinfection of any areas contaminated with blood or bodily fluids before they are used again.

5. Shared Responsibility

Every member plays a part in maintaining a clean and safe training environment.

Parents and guardians are responsible for ensuring children follow these hygiene requirements and do not attend training with suspected contagious infections.

Coaches reserve the right to ask any member who does not meet these hygiene requirements to sit out until the issue has been addressed.

By training at Northsouth Jiu Jitsu, members agree to follow these hygiene standards and help protect the wider training community.

Thank you for doing your part to look after yourself, your training partners and the Northsouth community.