Recruitment
3 Recruitment
Football relies heavily on the time and commitment freely given by volunteers and without this the opportunities for children and young people to participate would not exist. We recognise that there is often a difficulty obtaining volunteers, but believe that the recruitment and selection of volunteers is an essential part of ensuring that children continue to enjoy sport while remaining safe.
The IFA recommend that clubs will ensure good recruitment procedures by;
·Defining the role the individual is applying for (3.1).
· Setting a probationary period (6 months is recommended for staff or long term volunteers).
· Two members of the club meeting the individual to;
Assess the individual’s experience of working with children or young people and knowledge of child protection issues.
Assess their commitment to promoting good practice.
Assess their ability to communicate with children and young people (i.e. be approachable). One way of doing this is to consult young people or ask questions to examine how a person would respond to a particular scenario e.g. are they authoritarian or too relaxed in their approach.
What the IFA are doing
The IFA have registered with the DHSSPS POCVA Team to assist in the recruitment process for their own Grassroots Development Officer’s. The IFA from June 2006 will be introducing a system to ensure that they will not be issuing any further coaching certificates to individuals without them completing a Protection of Children (NI) check, to assist in assessing the suitability of a coach to work with young people. By using the DHSSPS vetting service the IFA are reassuring parents that those working with their children do not have a known history of harming children. This vetting should also reassure our coaches that those they are working alongside are to the best of the IFA’s knowledge appropriate to work with children.
Statement of non-discrimination
The IFA is committed to equal opportunity for all applicants including those with criminal convictions. Information about criminal convictions is requested to assist the selection process and will be taken into account only when the conviction is considered relevant to the post. Any disclosure will be seen in the context of the job criteria, the nature of the offence and the responsibility for the care of existing clientscustomers and employees. Any information which the IFA receive will be treated confidentially, and will be discussed with the individual before we make a final decision. After that decision is made the information will be destroyed. The disclosure of a criminal record or other information will not debar you from registration / appointment unless the IFA club considers that the conviction renders you unsuitable. In making this decision the IFA will consider the nature of the offence, how long ago it was committed and what age you were at the time and other factors which may be relevant.
