Article by Nicola Dean, Safeguarding Adults in Sport Manager
As a child one of the games that I loved playing at junior school was rounders. The feeling of hitting that ball and running round the posts was exhilarating. I loved playing for the school team, I cannot remember us ever winning a game but I do remember the sense of being part of a team and the fun that we had.
All of these memories came back to me when I met up with Alison Howard and Siân Barnett, safeguarding lead and deputy safeguarding lead for Rounders England.
Rounders England’s Safeguarding Adults Policy
I had supported Siân with the development of the Rounders England Safeguarding Adults policy and procedures and I was interested to hear more about the implementation work and how it fitted with the Rounders England wider strategy.
Rounders England offers support to clubs on all aspects of governance including safeguarding. There is an expectation that clubs adopt the Rounders England Safeguarding policies and procedures and have a welfare officer in place. The safeguarding policies and procedures are two separate documents, one for children and young people and one for adults.
You can find their safeguarding adults documents on the Rounders England Website.
Implementing Policies on the Ground
During our meeting we discussed the overlap between safeguarding and equality and diversity issues for adults and how to support and educate clubs on this.
Getting Clubs to Take Up Policies
One of the issues that Rounders England share with other National Governing Bodies is ensuring that clubs take up the policies and procedures and know what to do if they experience a safeguarding issue.
Thus there is a plan for 2018 to cascade the information about the safeguarding adults document throughout the organisation. As well as Alison and Siân there is an engagement officer connected to clubs to work with clubs on any issues that arise.
Encouraging More People to Join
Rounders England has a mission to ‘Connect People through rounders’ and I have found that there is a real commitment to getting people from all aspects of society joining teams and playing the game with safeguarding being embedded throughout.
Including Safeguarding in Wider Support
Siân Barnett said ‘it is important that we support our teams and leagues to be the best they can, in terms of playing, coaching, umpiring and creating a great environment. Being aware of the fact that we need to look out for adults as well as children is an important part of our strategy #WeAreAllRounders. It’s great to be able to offer solid advice on adult safeguarding and support if needed, and our thanks go to the Ann Craft Trust for helping us to develop this area of our work’.
Implementing Your Own Policies
At the Ann Craft Trust we help organisations with their policies and advise on how you can work to implement them effectively in a number of ways, including:
General Safeguarding Advice and Information
We have put together a range of essential safeguarding resources for all organisations including sports and activity clubs, groups and bodies.
For all of our available safeguarding resources, see our Safeguarding Resource Centre.
Safeguarding Adults in Sport Policy Templates
We also have Safeguarding Adults Policy and Procedures Templates designed purely for sport and activity organisations.
See our Policy and Procedures Templates for sports clubs and organisations.
Get Help and Advice with Your Policies
We offer expert adult safeguarding telephone and email advice to sport and activity organisations.
We are here to discuss situations or tasks that you are finding difficult, from policy and procedures to issues with participants.
You can get in touch to get advice for your organisation or call us on 0115 951 5400.