The Norfolk County Golf Partnership is very keen to ensure the children and young people have the opportunity to participate in golf activities delivered in a safe environment. We have adopted and agreed our own policy and procedures in line with the England Golf Children in Golf guidelines. More information about child protection in golf is available on the Children in Golf website. The Partnership's documents are available to download on this page.
POLICY AND PROCEDURES
Information can be found on the Children in Golf website including advise on social media, transport, bullying, disciplinary procefures ...
Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly CRB)
The government commissioned reviews in June 2010 into the ways in which the suitability of staff and volunteers to work with children and vulnerable adults is assessed in relation to their criminal record in England and Wales. The government stated that the system of vetting needed to be scaled back to “common sense levels” and it has now announced its proposals for a remodelling of the CRB (Criminal Records Bureau) disclosure system and the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) barring system.
The government proposals were introduced through the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, but only some of the proposals have taken effect, with others being introduced in spring 2013. The details of the 2013 proposals are still unclear, but in essence the proposed changes mean that:
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The CRB and ISA merged from 01 December 2012 to become the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). The merged organisation will be responsible for both access to criminal records and for barring those deemed unsuitable to work with children and vulnerable adults.
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The range of documents accepted by the DBS to prove identity as part of the DBS check application process has been narrowed. Advice on the documents required can be found at “Guidance for Verifiers and Applicants” on this website.
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The definition of “regulated activity” has changed. If the work that a volunteer or member of staff does fits within this definition, then the club/county they work for is able to ask them to provide a DBS check which will provide details of the person’s criminal record and also will make clear whether they are barred from working with children.
“Regulated activity” is defined as where someone is teaching, training, instructing, caring for or supervising children, or providing advice or guidance on well-being or driving a vehicle only for children, when this activity is done regularly and unsupervised.
“Regularly” is considered to be at least once a week. If the activity was taking place on 4 or more days in a 30 day period, this would also fall within the definition.
Supervision must be by a person who is working in a regulated activity, must be day to day and must be “reasonable in all the circumstances to ensure the protection of children”.
If the activity meets the requirements of the definition, but is supervised, then the club/county will only be able to request a DBS check with the criminal record information, NOT the barring information.
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A new on-line system will be available in spring 2013 which will enable those who work with multiple organisations and therefore require multiple DBS checks to transfer the information between employers. Full details are not yet available.
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There will be a legal requirement for those employing staff and volunteers working in the new definition of regulated activity to check them using the DBS system. More information will be provided following government announcements.
Clubs/counties who dispense with a member of staff or stop using a volunteer because of a concern about their behaviour related to safeguarding have a legal duty to report the matter to the DBS, even if that person has left of their own accord before the club could ask them to leave. Clubs/counties should contact their national governing body for assistance.
It is also an offence to knowingly take on a member of staff or volunteer to work with children where that person is barred by the DBS.
Selecting Volunteers and Staff
It’s vital that only appropriate people are selected to work with young golfers. They don't just have to have important checks but they should also have the correct skills and/or experience.
For more guidance on this click here
Courses
Active Norfolk have a Club and Coach Development Programme that includes Safeguarding and Protecting Children courses each month around the County. The courses are validated by SportsCoachUK are required by Sport England for clubmark accreditation purposes, including GolfMark.
For information about courses click here to see the Volunteers and Volunteering page of the website.
Welfare
In the event that anyone has a concern, the Partnership's Welfare Officer is Ben Jones, the Child Protection Officer for Active Norfolk. He can be contacted in full confidence by telephone on 01603 732330 or by email on ben.jones@activenorfolk.org.
Other Contacts
For any child protection query or concern please contact the England Golf Compliance Manager:
For any enquiries relating to the DBS (formerly CRB) application process or to obtain forms contact:
