Child Protection
Safeguarding Children in Football
Thank you for taking time to visit the Irish Football Association Child Protection section. This section was developed by IFA in partnership with the NSPCC's Child Protection in Sport Unit (CPSU).
What Club's/Football Centre's Should Do.
To assist your club in developing a culture where a child can feel safe and a parent / guardian knows that your club prioritises the welfare of their child, the IFA have developed the following advice about what to put in place based on the 6 Standards set out in "Getting it Right"(2).
Recruitment and selection (3)
Effective Management of Staff and Volunteers (4)
Reporting Guidelines that are communicated to all involved in the club (5)
Code of Behaviour (6)
Sharing Information (7)
General Safety and Management of Activities (8)
For further information please contact the IFA's Children's Officer;
Jim Grattan
IFA
20 Windsor Ave
Belfast
BT9 6EE
Tel: Office 028 90 669458
Direct line: 028 90 688426
e-mail jgrattan@irishfa.com
Football is an every-day activity for many children and makes a significant contribution to their well being and development. All football clubs have a duty to safeguard children from abuse within our sport. They also have a role in recognising and responding to concerns that a child may be being harmed within another setting, such as the family home. By encouraging all clubs to implement the above guidelines we believe that everyone in children's football will benefit - children, parents/guardians and leaders.
The Wider Picture.
Children can be subjected to many forms of unacceptable treatment by adults or indeed by their own peers, which we may never consider being abuse, but none the less the impact of such ill treatment is wide-ranging and impossible to quantify. At a personal level, such ill treatment can completely destroy a child's sense of worth attacking their self-confidence and self-esteem. At its worst some children can feel that their situation, which if it goes unchallenged, is so hopeless that suicide is their only option.
