INTRODUCTION:


The entire team at Treasure Gymnastics take our safeguarding responsibilities very

seriously.  All of our coach team (age 16+)  take part in safeguarding training annually and hold enhanced DBS checks.

We have policies and procedures in place to ensure coaches always work in groups and are never alone with a child, as well as a coach pledge to ensure that our team members work towards the highest standards thinking about the whole gymnast and their development..

We commit to striving towards best practise and following British Gymnastics safeguarding standards and policies - more information, and British Gymnastics safeguarding contact can be found here:

https://www.british-gymnastics.org/gymnasts/gymnast-membership/safeguarding-and-compliance

OUR WELFARE OFFICERS:

Nadine Coombes - Coaching Team member and Safeguarding lead trained.

Becki Allbut - Non coaching team member, Safeguarding trained.

Stephanie Bowen - Volunteer, Qualified coach not employed by Treasure Gymnastics, safeguarding trained.

You can contact them all directly or via the email address - safeguarding@treasuregymnastics.co.uk

Or individually on:

Becki.allbut@treasuregymnastics.co.uk

Stephanie.Bowen@treasuregymnastics.co.uk

Nadine.coombes@treasuregymnastics.co.uk

OUR PLEDGE TO OUR MEMBERS:

Treasure Gymnastics - Pledge to Protect our gymnasts - Your children.

It is never ok for a coach to Verbally, physically or mentally abuse an athlete.

Screaming, Shouting, shaming, questioning eating habits and food, weighing, creating hierarchy and unhealthy competition, over stretching, ignoring injury, ignoring an upset child, and inappropriate handling techniques all constitute our definition of abuse.

We understand that Coach is a position of trust.

Our families deserve the right to know that when they entrust their child to us to develop them we will take that responsibility seriously and we will treat their child with the respect and care that any parent should expect.

We will take any report of inappropriate coach behaviour seriously.

We will ensure that our teams feel safe to report that abuse if they see it in a constructive and confidential way.

We will ensure that everyone - Gymnasts, parents, and coaches are fully aware of our behaviour policy and that any sanctions are proportionate and fair.

At times gymnasts do need to be motivated or questioned on their behaviour to keep the environment safe for everyone and to keep gymnasts learning.  

Parents / guardians will be informed at the time of these interactions so that they can be part of the solution to move forward positively.

We will never punish a whole group for the actions of a few.

We will never apply sanctions based on performance.

We will do our utmost to protect our members.

This includes at events where our coaches will not allow other officials to speak to our gymnasts in a manor that does not meet our own expectations.  

We will continue to provide continuous professional development for our coaching team.

This will ensure that they have the knowledge and understanding required to safely develop our gymnasts both physically and holistically.

We will continue our schedule of regular session observations to ensure that standards are upheld at every class.

At all times we will have 2 trained club welfare officers

Contact details will be shared at the gym and on our website.  Welfare officers can be contacted by anyone and will be available to hear the concerns of any gymnast, member, or person with a concern.

We will continue an open door policy - On request parents can always arrange to view a session.

We don’t regularly have parents “in” the gym because this can cause noise and distraction, however will continue our termly open sessions and at any time a parent feels they need to they can observe a session.  In our gym there is free viewing from the ‘balcony” at other sites this can be difficult but this is purely down to logistics NOT to hide anything.  parents can be assured watching is welcome.

We will all strive to be good role models for our gymnasts as they grow.  

We will never expect a gymnast to complete full training on an injury.

Professional advice will be taken on board, and where appropriate, conditioning around the injury will be planned.

We will encourage our gymnasts to develop resilience and perseverance through healthy competition.

This will never be at the expense of team work, kindness and health.

All of our coaches have signed this pledge personally and have agreed to spend time analysing their own coaching practises to ensure that they uphold the standard that Treasure Gymnastics requires and expects from their team.

This is our promise to all of our members.


SAFEGUARDING STATEMENT:


We will seek to keep children and young people safe by:

  • Valuing, listening to and respecting them
  • Appointing a nominated child protection lead for children and young people, a deputy and a lead trustee/board member for safeguarding
  • Adopting child protection and safeguarding best practice through our policies, procedures and code of conduct for staff and volunteers
  • Developing and implementing an effective online safety policy and related procedures
  • Providing effective management for staff and volunteers through supervision, support, training and quality assurance measures so that all staff and volunteers know about and follow our policies, procedures and behaviour codes confidently and competently
  • Recruiting and selecting staff and volunteers safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made
  • Recording, storing and using information professionally and securely, in line with data protection legislation and guidance [more information about this is available from the Information Commissioner’s Office: ico.org.uk/fororganisations]
  • Sharing information about safeguarding and good practice with children and their families via leaflets, posters, group work and one-to-one discussions
  • Making sure that children, young people and their families know where to go for help if they have a concern.
  • Using our safeguarding and child protection procedures to share concerns and relevant information with agencies who need to know, and involving children, young people, parents, families and carers appropriately
  • using our procedures to manage any allegations against staff and volunteers appropriately
  • Creating and maintaining an anti-bullying environment and ensuring that we have a policy and procedure to help us deal effectively with any bullying that does arise
  • Ensuring that we have effective complaints and whistleblowing measures in place
  • Ensuring that we provide a safe physical environment for our children, young people, staff and volunteers, by applying health and safety measures in accordance with the law and regulatory guidance
  • Building a safeguarding culture where staff and volunteers, children, young people and their families, treat each other with respect and are comfortable about sharing concerns.
  • The adoption of British Gymnastics (BG) Health, Safety and Welfare

Guidelines.

  • The adoption of the BG guidelines for the protection of children and

vulnerable adults.

  • The appointment of a welfare officer (Child protection officer) to whom

grievances or complaints can be made confidentially.

  • Ensuring that staff are suitably trained in child protection and health,

safety and welfare issues.

  • Ensuring that coaches and officials have been screened to confirm

their suitability to work with children. Where appropriate this will include Criminal Record Disclosure

  • Ensuring that best coaching practice guidelines are followed at all

Times.

  • Ensuring that grievances and complaints are dealt with promptly.
  • Ensuring that a minimum of two coaches / helpers are present at all

training sessions or events.

Ensuring that the participants and or parents are aware of the purpose

of videoing, filming or photography during


BRITISH GYMNASTICS SAFEGUARDING INFORMATION (ADOPTED):

Then BG policy info already there

AFTER THE POLICY ALREADY PUBLISHED -

OTHER USEFUL CONTACTS:

NSPCC 0808 800 5000

www.nspcc.org.uk

Childline - UK number

0800 111

www.childline.org.uk

NSPCC Child Protection in Sport Unit

0116 366 5590


British Gymnastics (BG) is committed to supporting all young people to enjoy and excel in the sport and fully recognises that children need a safe, protective and nurturing environment if they are to fulfill their potential and remain in the sport.

BG aims to achieve a high standard in the safeguarding of members and has a key role in supporting gymnastics clubs to ensure safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is a fundamental consideration in everything they do. Anyone who provides or delivers gymnastics activity has a duty of care towards young people and needs to ensure that they offer a protective and child-friendly environment that gives parents reassurance that their children will be happy and safe.

Since the 2008 policy, there has been considerable progress in developing the network of trained Welfare Officers’ across the sport. As a condition of membership, all BG registered clubs are required to have a Welfare Officer with the designated responsibility for safeguarding. The Welfare Officer plays a key role supporting child-centered practice and ensuring robust safeguarding arrangements are in place in the club. BG remains fully committed to developing the Welfare Officer network and continually improving our safeguarding practice and support to help ensure gymnastics has a positive impact on all children involved in our sport.

Key Policy Information - About the Policy

The British Gymnastics (BG) policy is informed by the government guidance ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children – a guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, HM Government 2013’. This guidance, which is applicable in England, sets out the legislative requirements and expectations on individual services to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and provides the framework to which Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) monitor the effectiveness of local services.

BG policy translates for the gymnastics community the statutory guidance on making arrangements to safeguard and promote the welfare of children under Section 11 of the Children Act 2004. The BG policy is also informed by other key pieces of legislation, which are highlighted in the relevant parts of the policy. BG policy is developed in consultation with the NSPCC CPSU and is informed by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The British Gymnastics (BG) Safeguarding and Protecting Children policy 2014 replaces the 2009 policy.

The document is now presented in four parts, namely: Policy, Recognising and Responding to Abuse and Poor Practice, Safe Recruitment and Safe Environment and links to a number of other supplementary policies and procedures. In complying with the policy, affiliated organisations’ can be reassured that they meet their statutory responsibilities.

To Whom Does the Policy Apply?

BG is a UK wide Governing Body of Sport with affiliated Home Country Governing Bodies in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Although BG policy is based on the English guidance and legislation, in the light of the common principles and similar approaches taken by all Home Countries, most elements of this document are fully applicable to all individual members and affiliated organisations’. Any necessary differences have been highlighted in the document and reference made to any complementary home country policy/procedures.

The policy is applicable to all levels of the sport and provides a framework for those involved in gymnastics to meet their duty of care towards young people. The policy, where applicable, is mandatory for all BG staff, members and volunteers (except where there are home country variations arising from legislative differences). Any individual or organisation that is providing a service to BG must also demonstrate that they comply with these standards.

Anyone who manages, or has overall responsibility for, a gymnastics club or organisation must support their Welfare Officer in to fulfil their role and ensure their organisation is fully compliant with this policy. All BG members should also read and comply with the policy.

How Should the Policy be used?

The policy is the key source of reference for all safeguarding and protecting children related matters. The main users of these policies and procedures are likely to be Welfare Officers’, as it is their role to guide their organisation to plan, prioritise and implement the various safeguarding responsibilities and activities.

The policy also provides important guidance for anyone involved in gymnastics including parents, coaches, officials, and other volunteers. It offers practical guidance for those involved in providing gymnastic activities for children and relevant sections should be reproduced in an appropriate format and widely shared across the gymnastics community to increase general awareness and good practice.

How Will the Policy Remain Up-to-Date?

Although the policy takes into account all relevant current legislation, the document will need to be amended as required in response to changes in the gymnastics, sport, political, legal, ethical, social and technological environment in which we operate. Any amendments will be recorded and communicated to all relevant parties.

BG will also review its Safeguarding and Protecting Children policy on an annual basis and as required by the NSPCC Child Protection in Sport Unit (CPSU), UK Sport and Home Country Sports Councils. The policy may also be reviewed following introduction of any new internal or external safeguarding process and as a result of any significant child protection case within gymnastics or other sports

Acknowledgements

BG wishes to express its gratitude to the NSPCC CPSU, for their support and guidance in developing this document.