Child protection

Every day millions of people practice sports; as coaches, athletes, volunteers, referees and organizers. For most, this is a positive experience that develops social networks, confidence, skills and knowledge. For others the experience is negative.

Many clubs, organisations, funding bodies and governments have paid very little attention to the protection of children in sport for a considerable period of time. The most common reactions are that it's not happening, it's someone else's responsibility, or it's an isolated incident. These three attitudes are usually classified as:

Denial
Blame
Minimization

These typical responses leave children, coaches, clubs, sporting bodies, funding bodies and governments isolated, vulnerable and, in the long term, severely affected.

Child protection has both a preventive and reactive component; Ensure that effective policies, practices and procedures are in place to limit harm, as well as measures to report, investigate and address suspicions and incidents.

This section is designed to provide more information on child protection and, when linked to our Toolkit section, the tools needed to develop and implement a culture including practices, procedures and policies. These practices, procedures and policies are intended to ensure that everyone participating in the sport remains safe, has fun and learns.