Club Safeguarding Officers and CB Safeguarding Managers

Club Safeguarding Officers (formerly known as Club Welfare Officers) are volunteer appointments made by individual clubs and work closely with their local Consitituent Body Safeguarding Manager (CBSM). They following is a summary of Club Safeguarding Officers' roles and responsibilities, for further information and resources visit the RFU's safeguarding website.

Nature of the Role: Club Safeguarding Officer

To provide leadership in the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults in rugby union within the rugby club, while maintaining key relationships with the CBSM and local safeguarding partners. The Club Safeguarding Officer should undertake appropriate RFU safeguarding courses and will ideally have a background in child protection from any of the statutory agencies (police, social services, children’s services).

The candidate should also have a range of personal skills and attributes including: empathy, approachability, good sense of humour, objectivity, attention to detail, resilience and dedication to the cause of safeguarding young people under the age of 18 and vulnerable adults.

The appointed individual will receive ongoing support from the CBSM in the form of training, visits, guidance and regular communications.

Key Tasks

• Develop the clubs own safeguarding vulnerable people policy and procedures in conjunction with the RFU policy. Circulate and promote the RFU and club’s codes of conduct
• Be visible and approachable to all club members and ensure contact details are available to all young people, parents and club personnel and that these are posted on club notice boards and on the club website and registered on RugbyFirst
• In conjunction with the CBSM, develop an effective criminal records bureau (CRB) processing system within the club to ensure that all individuals working with young people undertake a CRB application every three years (and hold an ISA-registration from Oct 09)
• To co-ordinate a programme of training in conjunction with CBSM and/or Regional Development Officer (RDO) for club personnel, including club management committee, who are involved in working with young people (i.e. Safeguarding and Protecting Young People in Rugby Union courses)
• To ensure that all safeguarding issues and incidents involving adults, children and young people under are reported promptly to the CBSM (or RFU Safeguarding team in the CBSM’s absence)
• To have contact details for the local statutory agencies (police/social services etc.) and liaise with them when necessary
• To ensure that the club has an induction pack, which includes the club safeguarding/child protection policy, for new mini and youth players and that all parents sign for its receipt
• Be aware of individual children’s special educational or medical needs and the need to inform appropriate club age-group coaches/managers
• To be an active or co-opted member of the club management committee
• To ensure that the club’s first aid co-ordinator complies with RFU medical/first aid protocols
• To monitor club website for inappropriate content and report/amend as appropriate
• To be involved in a club’s seal of approval accreditation and to verify and confirm the information provided to the RDO is correct
• To distribute literature, electronic communication and new developments concerning the safeguarding of young people to club personnel as appropriate

Reports To

Club Executive Committee (and CBSM)

Key Relationships

CB Safeguarding Manager (CBSM), CB CRB Co-ordinator (if applicable), Club Senior and Mini/Youth Hon Secretary, Club Youth Registrar, Club Coaching Coordinator, RFU CRB Administrator, RFU Rugby Development Officer, Local Safeguarding Team/ Partnership and County Sport Partnership.