2025 marks 10 years since Sport England started funding our first ever Safeguarding Adults in Sport Manager.
To mark 10 years of safeguarding adults in sport, we asked members of the Ann Craft Trust sport team to reflect on how the sector has evolved over the past decade. We also asked them to share their thoughts on the biggest challenges the sector’s currently facing, along with their hopes for the future of sport.
Emma Gibson – Head of Safeguarding Adults in Sport
What sort of changes have you seen since you started working in safeguarding adults in sport?
I think to get to 10 years of having a dedicated sport offer within The Ann Craft Trust is progress in itself. Who knew all those years ago that we would ultimately have such a strong team in place, with designated support in Wales too, and increasing requests for support across the performance sector.
I remember the early days, when Nicola Dean started working as The Ann Craft Trust’s first Safeguarding Adults in Sport Manager. I introduced her to NGB and EDI leads, and we spent a lot of time networking and creating a dialogue. We are now in an enviable position of trying to find the time to respond to the many requests we receive.
The terminology’s changed over the past 10 years. We first moved from safeguarding “vulnerable adults” to safeguarding “adults at risk”. Now we’re committed to safeguarding all adults.
Fewer and fewer organisations are cutting and pasting their safeguarding children policies into their safeguarding adults policies. Instead, we’re seeing more discussions about how sport could respond specifically to adult concerns, and on the sort of policies and procedures that could prevent issues from arising in the first place.
There seems to be a much greater understanding of the various aspects that should complement a safeguarding policy, including designated safeguarding leads and clearly defined processes for managing concerns. We’re also seeing a much greater emphasis on EDI, and on how we can make sport cultures more welcoming and inclusive.
More sport organisations seem to be thinking of their staff, participants, coaches, and volunteers as individuals. Everyone has their own unique background, and their own unique motivation to participate, and so on. We need to consider all of these factors when initially welcoming people into the sport, and also should things ever go wrong.
Speaking of which, when things do go wrong, a lot more sharing and collective reflection tends to take place these days, so that we can all learn from each other’s experiences, and move on together.
What would you say are the most important priorities for safeguarding adults in sport at the moment?
We all have a responsibility to take action if we see or suspect that abuse is taking place. But even before that, we have a shared responsibility to do all we can to prevent abuse from occurring in the first place.
If you talk about “welfare”, and how “safeguarding everyone is important”, then you need to do the work to accommodate everyone in your policies. Don’t just fall back on your children’s resources and training. Instead, work to create dedicated policies and procedures for safeguarding adults.
When we talk about “safeguarding all adults”, we mean all adults: Every single one of us over the age of 18, regardless of whether we are covered under additional legislation or not.
In recent years, many sport and activity organisations have started incorporating the athlete’s voice into their policies. We need to see and hear much more of this, as it’s a powerful way to help people feel included, valued, and listened to.
Dealing with low level concerns can help prevent matters from escalating. In this way, safeguarding in sport can work less like a disciplinary process, and more like a mediation process.
What changes would you like to see in sport and activity in the coming years?
I want to see a focus on safeguarding all ages – genuinely meaning all ages.
If we’re working to build safer cultures in sport, how can we measure culture shift?
Everyone needs to understand their safeguarding responsibilities, regardless of their position. More people need to view safeguarding as a positive process, and not as a negative.
Finally, there must be greater understanding that people need to be their whole selves in sport. Club welfare and safeguarding policies can play a huge role in helping people feel happy and included. Safeguarding is not a remote box-ticking exercise. It cuts across every aspect of an athlete’s journey.
Sport reviews tell us that we are only as strong as our weakest link. Everyone matters.
Jodi Evans – Safeguarding Adults in Sport Manager for Wales
What sort of changes have you seen since you started working in safeguarding adults in sport?
In the short two years I have been part of this journey I have definitely noticed that more NGBs seem committed to safeguarding adults.
The knowledge around safeguarding adults still does not feel like it’s anywhere near the levels for safeguarding children. But I definitely feel like momentum is building in Wales.
What would you say are the most important priorities for safeguarding adults in sport at the moment?
Strengthening knowledge and awareness of safeguarding adults in sport. The lack of understanding means that many are lacking the confidence to approach the topic. But people should take their responsibilities for safeguarding adults just as seriously as they take their responsibilities for safeguarding children.
What changes would you like to see in sport and activity in the coming years?
I would like for partner services to pay more attention to the safeguarding in sport sector, and for statutory agencies to recognise the part they can play in safeguarding.
It does not yet feel like sport has the same level of respect around the “safeguarding table” as other sectors such as housing, healthcare, and education. But partnership working is just as vital in sport as it is in other sectors.
Statutory services such as the police and local authorities do not seem to understand the safeguarding procedures that take place in sport. They are therefore missing some major opportunities to mitigate and prevent risk.
Kimberley Walsh, Safeguarding Adults in Sport Manager
What sort of changes have you seen since you started working in safeguarding adults in sport?
There is increasing recognition and understanding that it is really important to safeguarding everyone involved in sport and activity, which includes adults as well as children.
The roles of ‘Safeguarding Lead’ and ‘Welfare Officer’ are becoming much more common in sport organisations. Previously, we only really saw these roles in education settings.
There’s also increasing recognition in the role that culture plays in creating safe and welcoming organisations. There are a lot more resources to help people recognise and record concerns, including more information, education, and training opportunities than ever before.
There are still varied levels of commitment and development across organisations in relation to safeguarding adults. But the good news is that more people are talking about safeguarding adults, and growing numbers are treating it as a key priority area.
What would you say are the most important priorities for safeguarding adults in sport at the moment?
Making sure your organisation is not burying its head in the sand! Don’t think that if you wait long enough, this issue might go away. It won’t!
Organisations should be proactive and focus on preventing abuse. This means creating the right kind of culture while also putting the essential processes in place to manage inappropriate behaviour and support individuals.
What changes would you like to see in sport and activity in the coming years?
It would be great if, when organisations get funding, they ringfence a proportion of their funding specifically for safeguarding work.
Joanne Pell – Safeguarding Adults in Sport Manager
What sort of changes have you seen since you started working in safeguarding adults in sport?
The Ann Craft Trust’s Safeguarding Adults in Sport team has greatly expanded in recent years. Originally we could only focus on England. But we can now work across the whole UK. We have a full-time post for Wales, and we’re getting enquiries for training in Scotland and Northern Ireland too.
Sport England made completing the Safeguarding Adults in Sport Framework a funding requirement for NGBs, APs, and system partners. This has put safeguarding adults on the same footing as safeguarding children, in respect of the CPSU Children Standards.
I feel like more NGBs now have a better understanding of safeguarding adults. More seem to understand that it’s just as important to keep adults safe as it is to keep children safe. This is a massive shift from when I first started, when some NGBs would ask why they had to safeguard adults at all.
Finally, there’s been a greater emphasis on culture, and on building safer cultures in sport. Certain high profile cases, such as the Whyte Review, have helped NGBs to understand that adults, as well as children, can be abused or groomed in sport.
What would you say are the most important priorities for safeguarding adults in sport at the moment?
We must continue to highlight the importance of safeguarding adults, and continue to support NGBs and APs to develop their practices in this area. Above all, we all have the same goal – to keep people safe from abuse!
It’s vital that we listen to the voice of the athlete. Organisations need to find an effective way to listen to their participants, as this will help them review and develop their policies, procedures, and resources.
What changes would you like to see in sport and activity in the coming years?
NGBs must take ownership and accountability of how things are in their sports. And if things aren’t good, they need to do something about it!
We need to make sport and activity as safe as possible so that people can focus on enjoying their sport, without worrying about abuse, grooming, or coercion. Athletes should feel confident to speak out if they have any concerns, and they should know that their concerns will be heard and acted upon quickly and efficiently.
There needs to be more collaborative working across sectors. For example, NGBs could work with organisations such as MIND and Age UK to get a fuller understanding of how to support people with their mental health and wellbeing.
The sector needs to move away from simple compliance, and move towards making an active commitment to keep people safe. Policies and procedures should be more than just words on paper, or on a website. We should recognise the difference they make in keeping people safe.
Stop saying “I’m doing this because I have to”. Instead, say “I’m doing this because it’s the right thing to do, and I am going to take others with me on the journey.”
Cath Sykes – Safeguarding Adults in Sport Manager
What sort of changes have you seen since you started working in safeguarding adults in sport?
I started working at the Ann Craft Trust four years ago, when Sport England specifically funded a new post to support the unregulated sector. There is still much discussion about the term ‘unregulated’, and about the sort of sport and activity organisations the term could be referring to. So instead, we started referring to the independent, commercial, and community providers.
We have achieved so much in the past four years. We launched the Safeguarding Adults in Sport Roadmap, we introduced a new eLearning course for the sector, and we’ve started running dedicated lead safeguarding officer forums.
I am still keen to reach out to more organisations. So if you are reading this and not yet working with us, then please get in touch.
What would you say are the most important priorities for Safeguarding Adults in Sport at the moment?
Understanding why we need to have safeguarding arrangements in place for all adults, and a greater recognition that abuse can take place anywhere. Ensuring that those working in the wider sport and activity sector can access the support they need to safeguard adults.
What changes would you like to see in the sport and activity sector in the coming years?
Continued funding to further support more sport and activity organisations.