Safeguarding Children Policy

This Safeguarding Children Policy sets out how Sports Key CIC protects the children and young people who take part in our activities and services. It applies to all staff, managers, directors, volunteers, or anyone working on behalf of Sports Key CIC.

1. Introduction

Sports Key CIC is a not-for-profit organisation run by:

• Directors – Jeavon Nicely, Daniel Allen and Jermaine Pitterson
• Company Number – 08641846
• Registered address – Alexander Stadium, Walsall Road, Birmingham, B42 2LR

Sports Key CIC services are managed and run by volunteers and staff members who make up “the Team”. One of the Team has particular responsibility for safeguarding children.

The Team has adopted this safeguarding children policy and expects every adult working or helping at Sports Key CIC to support it and comply with it. Consequently, this policy shall apply to all staff, managers, directors, volunteers, or anyone working on behalf of Sports Key CIC.

2. Purpose of the Policy

This policy is intended to protect children and young people who receive any service from us, including those who are the children of adults who may receive services from us.

As an organisation we believe that no child or young person should experience abuse or harm. We are committed to the protection of children and young people, where this policy is intended to provide guidance and overarching principles to those who represent us as volunteers or staff, to guide our approach to child protection and safeguarding.

3. The Risks to Children

Nearly every child grows up in a safe and happy environment and it is important not to exaggerate or overestimate the dangers. Nevertheless, there are situations where children need protection including:

• Sexual abuse
• Grooming
• Physical and emotional abuse and neglect
• Domestic violence
• Inappropriate supervision by staff or volunteers
• Bullying, cyber bullying, acts of violence and aggression within our schools and campuses
• Victimisation
• Self-harm
• Unsafe environments and activities
• Crime
• Exploitation

4. Recognising Abuse

All staff and volunteers must remain vigilant for signs of abuse or neglect in children and young people. Abuse can take various forms, and it is important to understand and recognise the signs to act promptly, such as:

Physical Abuse

• Unexplained injuries, bruises, burns, or fractures.
• Fear of physical contact or shrinking back when approached.
• Aggressive, withdrawn, or fearful behaviour.

Emotional Abuse

• Excessive withdrawal, fearfulness, or clinginess.
• Delayed emotional or social development.
• Persistent lack of self-esteem or confidence.

Sexual Abuse

• Inappropriate sexual knowledge or behaviour for age.
• Reluctance to be left alone with certain individuals.
• Physical indicators such as discomfort or pain.

Neglect

• Poor hygiene, malnutrition, or unaddressed medical needs.
• Consistently inappropriate clothing for the weather.
• Frequent absences from school or other commitments.

Reporting the Concern

• Inform the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL): share your concerns immediately with the DSL.
• If the individual is in immediate danger, contact emergency services (999).
• For concerns requiring further action, contact Birmingham Children’s Trust or Adult Safeguarding Services:
  • Birmingham Children’s Trust Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) – Phone: 0121 303 1888
  • Website: lscpbirmingham.org.uk

5. Universality of Protection

We recognise that:

• the welfare of the child is paramount;
• all children regardless of race, gender, religious belief, disability, age, sexual orientation or identity have a right to equal protection from harm;
• some children are more vulnerable to harm as a result of their circumstances, prior experiences, communication needs or level of dependency;
• working with children, young people, their parents and/or guardians, carers or other agencies is essential to protecting their wellbeing.

6. Safeguarding Children at Events / Activities

There are three kinds of events/activities:

1. Those open to adults and children of all ages;
2. Those for children accompanied by a ‘parent’;
3. Those for unaccompanied children, which are sometimes run alongside other events/activities.

At events and activities for unaccompanied children, children under the age of 16 must be enrolled by a responsible adult before being left with the event leader. The enrolment must record the child’s name, age and address and the names and addresses of the child’s parents, plus the parents’ mobile telephone numbers. Young people aged 16 or 17 may attend unaccompanied if they bring the written consent and mobile telephone number of one of their parents.

Both events and activities are to be defined broadly to include any occasions where Sports Key CIC will be providing a service.

7. Disclosure and Barring

Sports Key CIC offers the following activities for children and young people: Football, Netball, Badminton, Cycling, Boxercise, Boxing, Fitness Sessions and Table Tennis.

Some of our activities may therefore require adult participants or adult leaders to undergo DBS and/or police checks under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. The required level of checking (if any) will broadly reflect the degree and frequency of unsupervised access given to other people’s children.

The Team will take very seriously any allegation of impropriety on the part of any member of Sports Key CIC. A member of Sports Key CIC who discovers anything amiss should get in touch immediately with Jeavon Nicely.

The Team will review the allegation and the likely risk to children and, if appropriate, will consider banning the member from future events or revoking his or her membership or both, but only in full accordance with the rules and procedures of Sports Key CIC.

8. Health and Safety Aspects of Safeguarding Children

Before starting any event for unaccompanied children, the Team will carry out a risk assessment and then take steps to minimise all risks to health and safety. Parents and children will be made aware of any particular risks and of the steps to be taken to minimise those risks. The Team will keep a record of all risk assessments.

Sufficient adults must be present at any event for unaccompanied children to enable one adult to deal with any emergency while another adult supervises the children not directly affected by the emergency.

9. Policy on the Prevention of Bullying

We will not tolerate the bullying of children either by adults or by other children. If any incident of child-on-child bullying should arise at a Sports Key CIC event, those involved will be separated immediately and the parents of the children involved will be asked to deal with the matter. The Team will review all incidents of child-on-child bullying and assess the likely future risk to children. If appropriate, the Team will consider banning a child from future events, but only in full accordance with the rules and procedures of Sports Key CIC. Allegations of adults bullying children will be dealt with under the disclosure and barring procedures above.

10. Photographing Children

No photos will be taken or published of any child attending an event or activity unless prior written permission is sought from a person with parental responsibility. If any person has any concerns regarding any person taking photos at an event or activity, that person should contact Sports Key CIC immediately.

11. Managing Behaviour, Discipline and Acceptable Restraint

1. Adults supervising children at Sports Key CIC events must never use any form of corporal punishment. If physical restraint is absolutely necessary to prevent injury to any person or to prevent serious damage to property, then the minimum necessary restraint may be used – but for that purpose only.
2. Unacceptable behaviours at Sports Key CIC events for unaccompanied children will generally be stopped by separating the children from each other and from the group. They will be suitably supervised and will be returned as soon as possible to the care of their parents.
3. Sports Key CIC may apply a further disciplinary sanction; namely the banning of the child from one or more future events over the following 18 months. Any such sanction would be determined and applied by Jeavon Nicely.
4. A parent who is aggrieved by this ban may appeal to Sports Key CIC who will hear the views of all relevant persons. The decision of Sports Key CIC is then final. Any such appeals should be made to, and will be determined by, Jeavon Nicely.

12. Digital Safeguarding

Digital safeguarding is how we help to keep our participants, volunteers, and staff safe online, and it’s just as important as keeping safe offline.

Sports Key is committed to the safeguarding and protection of all participants, volunteers, staff and users of our digital services and social media channels, and we apply the same safeguarding principles to Sports Key activities whether they are offline or online.

This means protecting our participants, volunteers and staff from online harms such as:

• Online bullying and harassment
• Sexual exploitation and grooming online
• Discrimination and abuse on the grounds of any protected characteristics
• Sharing of illegal and inappropriate imagery
• Cyberstalking
• Impersonation and hacking
• Disinformation and misinformation
• The oversharing of personal information

Our digital safeguarding principles are to:

• Ensure our projects, activities, programmes and campaigns support all of our participants, volunteers and staff to stay safe online.
• Use best practice digital safeguarding for technical solutions, processes, and procedures.
• Help our volunteers to support participants in being effective online.
• Take best practice action when a digital safeguarding incident occurs.
• Maintain links with key organisations to raise awareness and refer and report incidents.
• Risk assess all projects, initiatives, programmes, activities, services and campaigns to make sure digital safeguards are in place.
• Support volunteers and staff via our safeguarding structure.
• Ensure the correct permissions are in place before taking and using photographs on mobile devices.
• Recognise that digital safeguarding is an important part of all our work, and that we are committed to always delivering best practice.

Online Abuse Reporting Process

i. Immediate action if abuse is suspected or disclosed

• Do not ignore – respond promptly to any reports or signs of online abuse.
• Reassure the individual – acknowledge their bravery for speaking up and affirm that they are not to blame.
• Gather key information – document what you observe or have been told (e.g. screenshots, URLs, timestamps) and note any details about the platform or individuals involved.

ii. Reporting online abuse internally

• Report the incident immediately to the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) or digital safeguarding officer.
• Use the organisation’s Digital Incident Reporting Form to detail the concern, including the type of abuse suspected or disclosed, the platform or app where it occurred, and any evidence (e.g. screenshots or chat logs).

iii. External reporting to relevant authorities

• If the concern involves illegal activity, such as online grooming or explicit images, report directly to law enforcement via CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection) or contact the local police.
• For content involving extremism, report to the Counter-Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU).
• For financial exploitation or scams, refer to Action Fraud UK.

iv. Removing harmful content

• Notify the platform or website hosting the abusive content and request its removal.
• Ensure evidence is preserved before content is deleted.

13. Other Policies

This safeguarding policy should be read together with the following policies and resources: Code of Conduct, Health and Safety, Employee Background Check, Equal Opportunities and Employee Conduct.

14. Legal Framework

This policy has been drawn up in accordance with the following:

• Children Act 1989
• United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child 1991
• General Data Protection Regulation
• Human Rights Act 1998
• Sexual Offences Act 2003
• Children Act 2004
• Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006
• Protection of Freedoms Act 2012
• Children and Families Act 2014
• Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Code of Practice – guidance for children and young people aged 0 to 25, from 1 September 2014
• Information Sharing: advice for practitioners providing safeguarding services
• Working Together to Safeguard Children (2017)

Key Safeguarding Contacts

• Designated Safeguarding Officer – Jeavon Nicely · Jeavon.nicely@sportskey.co.uk · 07423 403358
• Deputy Safeguarding Officer – Jermaine Pitterson · Jermaine.pitterson@sportskey.co.uk · 07789 268855
• NSPCC Helpline – 0808 800 5000
• Birmingham Children’s Trust – 0121 303 1888
• Emergency (out of hours) – 0121 675 4806

This policy was approved by the lead Safeguarding Officer and Deputy Safeguarding Officer on 28/11/2025 and is due for review every year.