The Club supports Basketball England’s Safeguarding and Welfare Policy believing that every person involved in the game of Basketball has the right to have fun and be safe in their sport.

We are committed to creating and maintaining the safest possible environment for children, young people and adults to participate in basketball and we recognise our responsibility to safeguard their welfare by doing all we can to protect them from all forms of harm and from neglect or bullying.

All people have the same rights to be safeguarded from abuse but it should be recognised that some children may face additional vulnerabilities and extra barriers to getting help. This could be because of their personal characteristics such as race, gender, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, social background or culture.

There should be awareness that these characteristics may mean that they are at greater risk of abuse because of factors such as prejudice, discrimination, reduced ability to resist or report abuse, communication barriers or myths based on stereotypes.

All Coaches and anyone interacting with children through the Club as Basketball England affiliates will have the following responsibilities:

accept the moral and legal responsibility to implement procedures to provide a duty of care for young people and vulnerable adults, safeguard their wellbeing and protect them from abuse;
respect and promote the rights, wishes and feelings of young people and vulnerable adults;
recognise that some young people and vulnerable adults could face additional barriers to getting help because of additional vulnerabilities which could include their ethnicity, gender, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, social background or culture.
ensure they adopt best practice to safeguard and protect young people and vulnerable adults from abuse, and to reduce the likelihood of allegations being made against themselves.
accept and abide by the Safeguarding Policy and Procedures and the Basketball England Code of Ethics and Conduct as well as all other policies and procedures;
respond appropriately to any complaints about poor practice or allegations of abuse.

The above are based on the following key principles:

The player’s welfare is paramount;
All young people and adults, regardless of any personal characteristic including their age, gender, ability, any disability they may have, culture, racial origin, religious belief and sexual identity have the right to protection from abuse;
A child is recognised as being under the age of 18 years (Children’s Act 1989 definition);
An adult has a moral and statutory duty for the care, custody and control of any person under the age of 18 under their supervision;
All incidents of poor practice or suspicions of poor practice and allegations of abuse will be taken seriously and responded to swiftly and appropriately;
All young people and vulnerable adults have a right to play the game of basketball in an enjoyable and safe environment;
Young people and vulnerable adults have a right to expect appropriate support in accordance with their personal and social development with regard to their involvement in the game of basketball;
It is the responsibility of the child protection experts and agencies to determine whether or not abuse has taken place but it is everyone’s responsibility to report any concerns.

All those involved in the management of players in basketball have a duty to ensure they are:

Allowed access to the game in a way that is appropriate for their age and ability;
Coached and trained by appropriately qualified people;
Not required to play in so many games, or to attend training sessions, as to become a threat to their wellbeing;
Not subjected to verbal or racial abuse from any source, especially from the bench and spectator gallery, including references to height, weight etc;
Not subjected to bullying, threats or undue pressure from any source;
Encouraged to achieve their full potential at all levels;
Instructed on how to behave, both on and off the court;
Afforded respect and value in a playing and training situation and any other basketball environment.

The welfare of children, young people and adults is everyone's responsibility, especially when it comes to abuse. Everyone involved in basketball - officials, coaches, volunteers, parents/carers, other family members, friends and the children themselves are encouraged to help.

If you have any concerns about poor or abusive practice or suspect that a child may be being abused or is at risk, please notify the club at welfareofficer@abingdoneagles.com

Abingdon Eagles

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