Key Insights From The Safeguarding Adults in Sport Framework

All Framework submissions are valuable. If things that are going well, it gives us something positive to shout about. Yet if there are any areas that are not going so well, it gives us a good idea of how we can offer further support.

Broadly speaking, we’re seeing different strengths and weaknesses from one submission to another. This makes drawing any specific conclusions a little tricky at this stage!

Nevertheless, in this post, we’ll share some key insights we’ve learned from the Framework so far.

Want to start your Framework journey? Get all the information you need here.

Safer Recruitment

Generally, Active Partnerships hosted by local authorities tend to have stronger safer recruitment policies. There seems to be a clear understanding that DBS checks are just one part of the safer recruitment process, and that they are fairly unlikely to apply to adult-only environments.

Both Active Partnerships and NGBs also need to think about how they communicate safer recruitment principles to their network, particularly for their club and volunteer network, and for those they support with funding.

Case Management

Invariably we note that Active Partnerships tend to struggle with case management more than NGBs. This is understandable, as Active Partnerships do not directly manage safeguarding cases in the same way as NGBs, who are responsible for a case from receipt to a final outcome.

We would suggest in this instance that you also consider lower level concerns and queries. How do you hear of them? What can you learn from them? How do you communicate the lessons you learn from safeguarding concerns? Also keep a record of any changes you have made following a safeguarding concern.

A complaints policy should not substitute a dedicated process for recording a safeguarding concern. We have found that some organisations are failing to make this distinction.

It is also important that someone external to the organisation can easily make a complaint or raise a concern. When we ask organisations to show us how they manage complaints and concerns, we are sometimes sent internal links. This means that some people will not have an easy route to make a complaint or a concern about a service.

Training and Staff Development

When we ask for evidence of organisations’ training and staff development resources, some organisations are still using materials that are largely focused on safeguarding children, particularly at club or coach level. Any resources an NGB or AP provides must focus on safeguarding everyone – adults as well as children.

Most organisations tend to have some kind of employee support system in place. While this is positive, it’s also important to consider the support you give to those who are involved in a safeguarding concern who are outside of the direct NGB/Active Partnership employee relationship.

What’s Going Well?

Regular board reporting against an implementation plan – It is great to focus on this, as it one of the essential criteria. We generally see good examples of the plans in place, although it is important to make sure you offer more than one board report in your framework submission, to show that you are regularly monitoring the progress.

Codes of Conduct – We have seen some great examples of Codes of Conduct. However, it’s important to ensure all roles are covered in your Codes, and to be clear about how people ‘sign up’ to them. It’s also vital to ensure that people understand what constitutes a breach, and the action your organisation will take in the event of a breach.

The Code of Conduct is a document that can and should cover behaviours towards both children and adults. We like those that talk about participants and members with no particular emphasis on young people.

Training – Broadly speaking, organisations are doing well with their training. Many have identified the training needs for roles across the organisation, while accurately recording completion dates.

Reporting –We have recently seen a great example of an easy read guide for adults to report a concern – an excellent way of making the process as accessible as possible.

What’s Not Going So Well?

Some organisations seem to struggle in linking their safeguarding policies with their EDI policies. In addition, some organisations struggle to feed their safeguarding adults messages into other areas of training and development. It is vital to think about how safeguarding adults is considered across all EDI developments within your sporting organisation.

In many submissions, there’s a general weakness in involving stakeholders in setting general organisational direction, and also in providing feedback on policy.

We can help you run a workshop with your participants, which can help you engage with them while collecting constructive feedback for continuous improvement. Learn more about hosting a participation group at your sport.

Finally, some organisations seem to struggle with evidencing a person-centred approach to case management. We would suggest you offer a case study to support your thinking in this area.

A Huge Thank You To All Who Have Committed to the Framework Process So Far

We would like to say thank you to:

• All organisations that have committed to the Framework process so far.
• Those who are accepting our feedback in the spirit in which it’s given.
• Those who have given us some invaluable feedback of their own – not just on the Framework process, but on anything related to safeguarding adults in sport.

If you’ve got any questions about any aspect of the Framework process, please always feel free to contact your Ann Craft Trust relationship manager. Or get in touch using our general email: ann-craft-trust@nottingham.ac.uk.

Want to start your Framework journey? Get all the information you need here.