The Welfare Officer of any club is a very important role. The job is to assist with the safeguarding and protecting of children, young people and vulnerable adults.
What you’ll get out of it
- Sense of giving back
- Contribution to the safeguarding and protecting of children, young people and vulnerable adults
- Meeting lots of people from different backgrounds
- A chance to develop skills
- Potential career development / improved employability
- Potential of new training and qualifications
Who will I be responsible to?
- The Chairperson
Who will I be responsible for?
- All club members under 18 (including players, referees/umpires, volunteers and coaches). It is the responsibility of all clubs providing sport for children and young people under 18 years of age to have a nominated Club Welfare Officer.
Ideally, you’ll need knowledge of
- National Governing Body’s Child Welfare Policy & Procedures
- Core legislation, government guidance and national framework for child protection
- Roles and responsibilities of local statutory agencies (social services, police and Area Child Protection Committees)
- Role and responsibilities of both the National Governing Body and the club in safeguarding the welfare of children and young people and the boundaries of the club welfare officer role
- Awareness of equalities issues and child protection
You will also need
- Basic administration skills
- Ability to maintain records
- Ability to provide basic guidance
- A child focussed approach
- Good communication skills.
What you will do
- Assist the club to fulfil its responsibilities to safeguard children and young people
- Assist the club to implement the child welfare section (including training) of the development plan (link to development plan page in Organising and Governance)
- To be the first point of contact for staff, volunteers, parents and children/young people where concerns about children’s welfare, poor practice or child abuse are identified
- Be the first point of contact with the Child Welfare Officer at your National Governing Body
- Implement the National Governing Body’s reporting and recording procedures
- Maintain contact details for local social services, police and the Area Child Protection Committee
- Promote the National Governing Body’s best practice guidance/code of ethics and behaviour within the club and anti-discriminatory practice
- Ensure confidentiality is maintained
How much time will it take?
- Approximately 2-3 hours per week, though this will depend on the nature of your sports club/organisation.