There have been some significant developments within the world of safeguarding and protecting children and vulnerable adults in recent months; all of which may have a potential impact upon STA members.

In order to support our members a summary of the changes are below, which will be included within the latest version of our Code of Practice.

Pool Lifeguards and DBS Eligibility

There has always been an interesting debate as to whether or not lifeguards are undertaking regulated activity, and thus would need a DBS check. The Child Protection in Sport Unit (CPSU) has now confirmed that any lifeguard doing more than 3 shifts in a 30-day period and who is unsupervised, now requires a DBS check. The supervisor (lifeguard manager) also needs a DBS check irrespective of the hours worked.

Changing Rooms

In March 2018, the NSPCC released their factsheet on best practice for PE changing rooms. This fact sheet is already reflected in the STA guidelines, but this document supersedes the previous guidance.

Download

Responding to Non-Recent, Historic Abuse in Sport

Recent media interest in non-recent abuse (an incident that occurred when the victim was under 18 but is now over 18, or where the allegation is made by a child 1 year or more after it is alleged to have occurred) has seen an increase in the number of allegations being made.

At STA we have and will fully cooperate with any investigation of non-recent abuse, and to support this we have released a new policy to handle such allegations as recommended by the NSPCC.

View Policy

Any allegations or disclosures should be reported to STA’s designated child protection officer on +44 (0)1922 748642 or at childprotection@sta.co.uk.

Definitions and Signs of Abuse

In December 2017, the NSPCC updated their definitions of abuse, which now includes bullying and cyberbullying, child trafficking, female genital mutilation, child sexual exploitation and harmful sexual behaviour.

The signs of each form of abuse can be downloaded at www.nspcc.org.uk. They are highly relevant to the aquatic environment, and again these changes are reflected in the latest version of our Code of Practice.

Incident Report Form

The reporting of potential abuse or concerns is vital to ensure the wellbeing of the children and vulnerable adults we serve. To assist in reporting concerns, we have created an incident report form, which is available to download from our safeguarding policy.