Everyone working with children and young people has a responsibility for keeping them safe, irrespective of their role, whether they are paid members of staff or volunteers.

England Golf is committed to ensure that the sport of golf is one within which all participants can thrive in a safe environment and that all children and young people have an enjoyable and positive experience when playing golf.

• The welfare of children is paramount.

• A child is defined by law in England and Wales as a person under the age of 18 years.

• All children, regardless of their Age, Race, Religion or Belief, Disability, Gender identity or Sexual Orientation, have the right to protection from abuse.

• All concerns and allegations of abuse and poor practice will be taken seriously and responded to swiftly and appropriately.

• All children have the right to be safe.

• All children have the right to be treated with dignity and respect.

• The Duxbury park GC will work with children, their parents/carers and external organisations to safeguard the welfare of children participating in golf.

• We recognise the authority of the statutory agencies and are committed to complying with Local Safeguarding Children Board Guidelines (LSCB), Working Together under the Children Act 2004, and any legislation and statutory guidance that supersedes these.

• The Duxbury Park GC is committed to working in partnership with other key UK Golf Bodies to continually improve and to promote safeguarding initiatives across the sport.

• The Duxbury park GC owes a legal duty of care to children on their premises or engaged in their activities. That duty is to take reasonable care to ensure their reasonable safety and the duty is higher than it would be for adults.

The Duxbury park GC aims to:

• Provide a safe environment for children and young people participating in golfing activities and try to ensure that they enjoy the experience.

• Ensure robust systems are in place to manage any concerns or allegations.

• Support adults (staff, volunteers, PGA Professionals, coaches, members and visitors) to understand their roles and responsibilities with regard to their duty of care and protection of children.

• Provide appropriate level training, support and resources for staff, volunteers

  & coaches to make informed and confident responses to specific safeguarding issues and fulfill their role effectively.

• Ensure that children and their parents/carers are informed and consulted and, where appropriate, fully involved in decisions that affect them.

• Reassure parents and carers that all children and young people will receive

  the best care possible whilst participating in club activities and communicate Policy and Procedure to them through website/letter/consents.

The Duxbury park GC will seek to promote the principles of safeguarding children by:

• Reviewing their policy and procedures every three years or whenever there is a major change in legislation. Guidance from England Golf will be sought as part of the review process.

• Conducting a risk assessment of club activities with regard to safeguarding and take appropriate action to address the identified issues within suitable timescales.

• Using appropriate recruitment procedures to assess the suitability of volunteers and staff working with children and young people in line with guidance from England Golf.

• Following National Governing Body (NGB) procedures to report concerns and allegations about the behaviour of adults and ensuring that all staff, volunteers, parents and children are aware of these procedures.

• Directing staff, volunteers & coaches to appropriate safeguarding training and learning opportunities, where this is appropriate to their role.

The Duxbury park GC  will endeavour to ensure that all volunteers and staff working with children and young people are appropriate and suitable to do so, and that they have all the information they require to undertake their job effectively and appropriately.

Each role which involves an element of responsibility with regard to children, particularly those involving the regular supervision of children, whether voluntary or paid, should be assessed by the recruiting body to establish which qualifications, checks and other requirements are necessary. These will include the following:

• An application form (Appendix 1)

• A self-disclosure form (Appendix 2)

• References from 2 people (Appendix 3)

• A signed Code of Conduct (Appendix 4)

• A Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check on people involved in ‘regulated activity’ with children (Guidance on Regulated Activity & DBS- Appendix 16)

Details of the requirements and the qualifications and checks of individuals will be recorded by the Club Welfare Officer/Secretary/Manager who will also hold copies of the necessary Safeguarding and Protecting Children (SPC) certificates. The nominated person will possess all relevant and appropriate contact details of all staff / volunteers and other relevant bodies.

All staff, volunteers & coaches will be offered access to appropriate child protection training. The Duxbury park GC recommends attendance at the UK Coaching Safeguarding and Protecting Children (SPC) workshop and will ensure that all volunteers and staff who have significant contact with children attend. An online UK Coaching refresher course should be completed and repeated every three years for those involved in “Regulated Activity.”

All staff, volunteers & coaches working with children and young people will be asked to read and become familiar with the  Duxbury park GC Safeguarding Policy and Procedures.

All staff, volunteers & coaches involved with children and young people will be asked to read the Duxbury park GC  Code of Conduct relevant to their role, and sign to indicate their understanding and agreement to act in accordance with the code. The code is linked to the Duxbury park GC’s Disciplinary Procedures. (Codes of Conduct-Appendix 4,5,6)

The Duxbury park GC are committed to the fact that every child and participant in golf should be afforded the right to thrive through being involved in sporting activity for life, in an enjoyable, safe environment, and be protected from harm.  The Duxbury park GC acknowledge the additional vulnerability of some groups of children (e.g. disabled, looked after children, those with communication differences).  The Duxbury park GC will ensure that the environment is appropriate for the child, and tailored to their needs so that they have a positive experience of their sport without risk of harm.

2.1 If a player, parent/carer, member of staff or volunteer has a concern about the welfare of a child, or the conduct of another child/young person or an adult (whether they are a parent, coach, member, or otherwise), these concerns should be brought to the attention of the Club Welfare Officer without delay. The person reporting the concern is not required to decide whether abuse has occurred, but simply has a duty to pass their concerns and any relevant information to the Welfare Officer. Please refer to Flowcharts 1 & 2 for further details (see below).

2.2 All concerns will be treated in confidence. Details should only be shared on a “need to know” basis with those who can help with the management of the concern.

2.3 Concerns will be recorded on an Incident Report Form and sent to the England Golf Lead Safeguarding Officer and retained confidentially within the club. The England Golf Lead Safeguarding Officer can assist with completion of this form if required, tel: 01526 351824. (Incident Report Form-Appendix 8)

2.4 The Duxbury park GC  will work with England Golf and other external agencies to take appropriate action where concerns relate to potential abuse or serious poor practice. The Duxbury park GC disciplinary procedures will be applied and followed where possible.

2.5 In the event of a child making a disclosure of any type of abuse, the following guidance is given:

• Reassure them that they have done the right thing to share the information

• Listen carefully

• Do not make promises that cannot be kept, such as promising not to tell anyone else

• Do not seek to actively question the child or lead them in any way to disclose more information than they are comfortably able to: this may compromise any future action. Only ask questions to clarify your understanding where needed e.g. can you tell me what you mean by the word?

• Record what the child has said as soon as possible on an incident report form.

• You should explain to children, young people and families at the outset, openly and honestly, what and how information will, or could be shared and why, and seek their agreement.

• Parents or Carers should be informed if the allegation does not involve them.

2.6 The NSPCC Helpline is available to discuss concerns regarding poor practice and abuse in confidence with members of the public who need support. Those with concerns are encouraged to use this service. The Helpline number is 0808 800 5000.

2.7 Safeguarding children and young people requires everyone to be committed to the highest possible standards of openness, integrity and accountability.  The Duxbury park GC supports an environment where staff, volunteers, parents/carers and the public are encouraged to raise safeguarding and child protection concerns.  Anyone who reported a legitimate concern to the organisation (even if their concerns subsequently appear to be unfounded) will be supported.  All concerns will be taken seriously. (Whistleblowing Policy-Appendix 15)