SAFEGUARDING POLICY STATEMENT
Table Tennis England has put in place a series of policies and guidelines in order to ensure that all of our young people and vulnerable adults are able to enjoy our sport free from abuse.
Lillington Free Church Table Tennis Club aims to create an atmosphere where children, young people and vulnerable persons feel valued and safe and a place where their welfare is promoted.
The club supports and adopts the Safeguarding Policy of Table Tennis England
It will be rigorous and vigilant in protecting all members of the club from abuse, bullying and intimidation. We will do this through promotion of good practice and providing guidance to volunteers working within the Club on what constitutes appropriate behaviour.
Everyone involved in the Club will have access to our detailed Child Protection Policy and is obliged to make sure that children and young people using the club are safe.
TABLE TENNIS ENGLAND SAFEGUARDING POLICY
Safeguarding can be viewed as the ‘umbrella’ that protects all of table tennis through examples of good practice, policies and guidelines.
The Lillington Free Church Table Tennis club key principles:
• Be fully aware of their responsibilities with regard to safeguarding and child protection.
• Safeguard and promote the interests and wellbeing of the young and vulnerable people with whom they are working.
• Respond appropriately to all concerns.
• Respect and promote the rights, wishes and feelings of all young and vulnerable people and take all reasonable and practical steps to protect them from harm, discrimination or abuse.
• Offer club members support and training to allow them to fulfil their individual role with regard to the protection and safeguarding of young and vulnerable people.
• The welfare of the child is paramount and also that of any vulnerable member of our society. All young and vulnerable people have the right to protection from abuse regardless of their age, culture, disability, gender, racial origin, religious belief and/or sexual identity.
• All allegations will be taken seriously and any reports or concerns will be dealt with promptly and sensitively ensuring that all appropriate action is taken. Staff and volunteers recognise they have the responsibility to ensure that they act upon any concerns or allegations.
• Processes for dealing with all complaints and allegations are fair and open to challenge through an appeals process. The club commits to support anyone who, in good faith, reports their concerns.
• Require all staff and members to adopt and abide by Table Tennis England’s Safeguarding and Vulnerable Adults Policy and Guidelines which incorporates Table Tennis England’s Codes of Conduct.
• Personal information will be treated in strict confidence, within the limits of the law, which requires that the Police, Children’s Social Care and/or any other statutory agencies including the NSPCC be informed where there are concerns that a child or adult is at serious risk of harm or it is believed that a crime has been committed.
The club has adopted the Table Tennis England Child Protection Policy and Guidelines. The Table Tennis England Safeguarding Guidelines are available from the Table Tennis England website (www.tabletennisengland.co.uk), Guidelines link: http://tabletennisengland.co.uk/about/safeguarding/safeguarding-guidelines/.
To aid in the implementation and running of these guidelines Lillington Free Church have appointed a Welfare Officer, whose duty it is to see that the club, to the best of its ability, follows this policy statement.
The current Welfare Officer is Tom Brocklehurst
Policy Signed By Club Chairman Phil John
Dated: 5th January 2017
To accompany our Safeguarding Policy Statement, listed below are a subset of some of the key factors to be considered for each category of Lillington Free Church member/volunteer, it is emphasised this is only a subset and all members are encouraged to read the full guidance notes re safeguarding from Table Tennis England.
If any member has any questions or concerns about what to do in a particular situation they should contact the Club’s Welfare Officer.
CODE OF CONDUCT FOR RESPONSIBLE ADULTS AND ORGANISERS
INTRODUCTION
Anyone involved in table tennis who is in charge of groups of children should be aware AT ALL TIMES that they are legally and morally responsible for the children’s welfare and behaviour.
Where it is not possible to follow the guidelines exactly then everyone should use a common sense approach but ALWAYS ENSURING THAT THE WELFARE OF THE CHILD IS PARAMOUNT and should never take any actions that could prejudice this statement.
Key examples:
• Collect and hold consent forms, emergency contact numbers and medical information for all players.
• For groups including children under the age of 11 the ratio of adults to children should be a minimum of 1:8, and for over the age of 11 the ratio should be a minimum of 1:10 with 2 adults at all times for groups in excess of 4. For trips; mixed gender groups of any size must always be accompanied by at least one male and one female adult.
• Should a situation arise where a person is travelling alone with a group of children they must be aware at all times of their own fallibility in case of accident or illness, and take steps never to compromise the safety of the group members.
• Avoid taking children alone on car journeys where possible.
• Remember you are a role model so always avoid inappropriate use of alcohol and tobacco, and never condone the use of any type of enhancing drugs in the company of children.
• If any injuries occur keep a detailed written record of the incident along with any action taken.
COACHES CODE OF CONDUCT
If you are concerned about the welfare of a child, you have a responsibility to report your concerns and/or seek advice from the clubs welfare officer. Coaches must not carry out investigations into any concerns.
1. Respect
Treat everyone fairly and equally, within the context of their activity, regardless of gender, disability, ethnic origin, religion or beliefs, political persuasion, socio- economic status, athletic potential, marital status, sexual orientation or gender reassignment.
2. Relationships
Table Tennis coaches must:
2.1. Accept responsibility for participants’ conduct and challenge inappropriate behaviour, including the use of foul or abusive language
2.2. Encourage participants to accept responsibility for their own behaviour and performance whether in training, competing or in life in general
3. Personal Standards
Table Tennis coaches are expected to demonstrate proper personal behaviour and conduct at all times. Coaches are expected to act as a role model for athletes at all times.
Table Tennis coaches must:
3.1. Display high levels of punctuality, dress, language and preparation at all times
3.2 Recognise personal limitations and be prepared to pass athletes on to more capable coaches to ensure the continued development of the athlete Table Tennis coaches must not:
3.3. Criticise fellow coaches; either privately or publicly
3.4. Drink alcohol or use recreational drugs whilst in the company of athletes, including when travelling
3.5. Drink alcohol or use recreational drugs before or during coaching sessions or events
3.6. Smoke in front of participants
4. Professional Responsibilities
Coaches should be well-prepared and possesses up-to-date knowledge of Table Tennis so as to maximise the benefits and minimise risk to the athletes. Coaches are reminded that they are responsible for the image and integrity of the sport and coaching profession and their actions should reflect this.
Table Tennis coaches must:
4.1. Hold a coaching licence and keep credentials up to date in order to maintain the validity of that licence
4.2. Provide a safe and secure environment for training and competition, minimising any risks to athletes
4.3. Ensure that player information and medical details are available at all times
4.4. Work in a publicly open environment and avoid situations where they are working alone and unobserved with a young person
4.5. Ensure that any form of physical contact with athletes is appropriate to the situation and is absolutely necessary. Coaches must ask permission of the participant and explain what they are doing and why the physical contact is necessary
5. Fair Play
5.1. Maintain dignity in all circumstances, and demonstrate self-control.
CODE OF CONDUCT FOR PLAYERS
Table Tennis England expects that everyone involved with table tennis will: respect the rights, dignity and worth of anyone they meet within our sport; treat everyone equally regardless of age, ability, gender, race, religion, ethnic origin, social status or sexual orientation; accept it is all of our responsibility to challenge any injustice that may occur within our sport; accept that everyone has the right to be protected from abuse.
• Always do your best in every situation and set a positive example to others.
• Be punctual at all times for training and competition and be ready at the table to play.
• If you feel unwell or have an accident you should report immediately to one of the responsible adults.
• Treat both the competition and training venues with respect and always leave kit bags neatly where they will not cause an obstruction to others.
• Once at the competition playing arena no player should leave the venue unless given specific permission or instructions by one of the responsible adults.
• Players must be responsible for ensuring that they arrive at the either the competition or training venues with all their correct kit and equipment and must be responsible for their belongings.
• No player should take or in anyway interfere with another person’s property or belongings.
• Always obey any instructions given by one of the responsible adults.
• Be courteous and polite to all the people you meet whilst a member of the squad, particularly your opponents, practice partners, coaches and fellow team and squad members. This also includes negative body language whilst on the table tennis table.
• Take responsibility for yourself in and out of competition and training and always be aware of your personal safety as you would at home i.e. do not talk to strangers, do not get into a vehicle with a stranger.
• Always respect and never under estimate your opponents.
• Always encourage and support your fellow team members at all times without behaving in an unsporting manner towards their opponents.
GUIDELINES FOR COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE FOR CLUBS
It is a requirement that if you have Safeguarding guidelines and a code of conduct you expect them to be used, therefore you must have a complaints procedure in place to support them. Lillington Free Church Table Tennis Club have adopted the Complaints Procedure as detailed within the English Table Tennis Safeguarding guidelines.
All complaints will be treated in a confidential manner, so that appropriate investigation can be undertaken.
• Club Disciplinary Procedure
• Table Tennis England has a set of codes and procedures, which we have adopted, however, a Codes of Conduct can only be effective if there is a disciplinary process to support them.
The following are some options that might be considered as sanctions:
• Verbal warning
• Written warning
• Exclusion from specified number of training sessions
• Exclusion from club trips and/or competitions
• Exclusion from the club or league which could be permanent or time limited
1:1 Coaching
Many of our coaches undertake 1:1 coaching, often with younger players. This is a private arrangement. However, we advise that the parties involved are aware of our safeguarding policy and only deviate from it if, having considered any possible risks, it is mutually agreeable to all the personnel it affects.
IF ANYONE IS IN DOUBT ABOUT WHAT ACTION THEY SHOULD TAKE IN A PARTICULAR SITUATION PLEASE SEEK ADVICE FROM THE CLUB’S WELFARE OFFICER, TOM BROCKLEHURST. IF, FOR ANY REASON, THE WELFARE OFFICE CAN NOT BE CONTACTED PLEASE CONTACT THE CLUB’S CHAIRMAN, PHIL JOHN, INSTEAD.