PLAYER PROTECTION POLICY

CONTENTS

SECTION HEADING

1 POLICY STATEMENT

2 ABBREVIATIONS, DEFINITIONS AND NOTES

3 CODE OF CONDUCT AND GOOD PRACTICE

4 RESPONSIBILITIES

5 IDENTIFICATION OF ABUSE

6 DEALING WITH ALLEGED COMPLAINTS

7 APPLICATION AND SELECTION PROCEDURES

8 MEMBERSHIP AND REGISTRATION FORMS

APPENDIX – EXAMPLES OF MEMBERSHIP AND REGISTRATION FORMS

1. POLICY STATEMENT

TROON THISTLE YOUTHS FOOTBALL CLUB IS FULLY COMMITTED TO PROVIDING EVERY PLAYER AND OFFICIAL WITH A SAFE ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH THEY MAY ENJOY PARTICIPATING IN GRASSROOTS FOOTBALL.

(a) Policy Principles

All players have a right to protection against physical abuse, verbal abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, bullying and neglect.

All players have a right to a safe environment.

All players have : -

The right to express opinions and to have those opinions considered in all matters that concern their well being.

The right that all actions concerning the player should be in his/her best interests.

The right to have all suspicions and allegations taken seriously and actioned as appropriate.

(b) Club’s Commitment

Troon Thistle YFC has a commitment to implement a Player Protection Policy which will include the appointment of Player Protection Officers and which will be reviewed on a regular basis .

2. ABBREVIATIONS, DEFINITIONS AND NOTES

(a) Abbreviations

SFA: Scottish Football Association

SYFA: Scottish Youth Football Association

WOSL: West of Scotland Youth Football League

CAL: Central Ayrshire League

VDS : Volunteer Development Scotland is the umbrella group to which volunteer groups register to enable vetting checks to be carried out by Disclosure Scotland.

DS : Disclosure Scotland is the body set up to carry out vetting checks on behalf of the Scottish Criminal Record Office.

The club: Troon Thistle YFC

(b) Definitions

CHILD: Under cover of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 anyone participating under the jurisdiction of the SYFA who has not reached their eighteenth birthday shall be considered a child for the purposes of this policy.

CHILD ABUSE: Child abuse is used to describe ways in which children are harmed.

OFFICIAL: Any person who, whether registered as a member of the club or not, acts on behalf of the club by being in the dressing room, entering the field of play on behalf of the club, acts as an assistant referee on behalf of the club, is in the club’s technical area, or assists in the running of Troon Thistle YFC.

PARENT: Mother, father or legal guardian.

PLAYER: A player participating in Youth Football for Troon Thistle YFC under the jurisdiction of SYFA.

3. CODE OF CONDUCT AND GOOD PRACTICE

Troon Thistle YFC endorses the Code of Conduct and Good Practices section of the SYFA Player Protection Policy (section 4) which highlights ways of reducing the risk of child abuse taking place. The Code contains advice for (1) Normal Activities (2) Club Outings and (3) Overnight stays.

A copy of the SYFA Player Protection Policy is contained on the SYFA’s web site and all officials and members are expected to be familiar with and follow its provisions.

4. RESPONSIBILITIES

Troon Thistle YFC considers the roles of various parties as follows: -

(a) Parent/Guardian

All parents / guardians must take all measures necessary to ensure that they are satisfied with the club and the club’s officials.

All parents / guardians must sign the relevant SYFA registration form.

All parents / guardians must sign the relevant club registration form.

All parents / guardians must ensure that their children are safely transported to and from all club activities. This is the parents’ responsibility.

All parents / guardians must know the identity of the club and/or team Protection Officer and their contact details.

All parents must display high standards of behaviour and sense of fair play and not to act in any way which will bring the club into disrepute.

(b) Club Officials

All officials e.g. managers, coaches, first aiders, physiotherapists, that have regular and/or unsupervised contact with children must complete a Disclosure Scotland Vetting Form, submit it to the relevant SYFA Protection Officer who will on approval send it directly to the National Secretary.

All officials who know that they have criminal convictions or any relevant information to disclose must send a letter disclosing this information to the SYFA Protection Officer at Hampden Park in accordance with the requirements of the SYFA Player Protection Policy.If they do not submit a letter of Self-Disclosure this will debar them from membership. Any official who submits a letter of Self-Disclosure and provides false information and/or omits information will be debarred from membership.

All officials must complete the club’s vetting procedures as described in Section 7 of this Policy document.

All officials must be fully conversant with the club’s Protection Policy and the SYFA Protection Policies.

All officials must be fully conversant with the club’s Constitution and the SYFA Constitution and Rules.

All officials must protect all players from all forms of abuse.

All officials have a duty to report any allegations or concerns about other players, adults or officials. Note: All persons involved in grassroots football have responsibilities to report any suspected or alleged cases of abuse to the relevant Protection Officer. It is not the official’s responsibility to decide whether or not a player has been abused.

All officials must display high standards in respect of behaviour and appearance.

All officials should project an image of health, cleanliness and efficiency in respect of the function for which they have responsibility.

All officials must observe the SYFA registration procedures in respect of age group and maturity of their players.

All officials must promote the FIFA initiative on fair play.

All officials should attempt to have coaching qualifications appropriate to the ability of players they are coaching subject to the Constitution of the SYFA.

On seeking membership of the SYFA, the club must complete the official membership application form signing the declaration to enable all club officials to be vetted. Any official who does not agree to be vetted or fails the vetting procedure will not be eligible for membership of the club or the SYFA.

Each Age Group within the club will appoint a Player Protection Officer for protection issues - all club members, players and player’s parents will be advised of the official responsible for protection within each age group plus his/her contact details.

The club will refer to the Player Protection Policy within its Constitution.

The club will ensure that relevant checks are carried out on ALL club officials before they are offered full membership of the club.

The club will ensure that ALL relevant club officials complete a Disclosure Scotland Vetting Form and submit it to the relevant SYFA Protection Officer.

The club will make sure that all of its officials are fully conversant with the club’s Player Protection Policy and the SYFA Player Protection Policy.

The club will make sure that all of its officials are fully conversant with the club’s Constitution and the SYFA Constitution and Rules.

The club will protect all players and officials from all forms of abuse. The club expects that all officials will report concerns in respect of any suspected abuse. In cases of reported abuse, the club will maintain total confidentiality and ensure that information will only be shared on a “need to know” basis i.e. with people who need to know to ensure the child’s health, welfare and development.

The club will be committed to eradicating bad practice.

The club will implement all proposals or amendments, as agreed by the relevant club meeting, in respect of player protection policies.

(d) Player Protection Officer (PPO)

The PPO must ensure all Club Officials or any person acting on behalf of the club are named on the relevant SYFA Club Membership Application Form.

The PPO must ensure all completed information that has to be retained is sent directly to the National Secretary to be stored in a completely safe and confidential manner( It is a criminal offence to disclose any information to any third party). The only exception to this is the reporting of abuse to either the National Secretary or the police.

The PPO should request Official Disclosure Scotland Vetting Forms from their League Secretary or from the National Secretary and must check that all forms are completed properly; they must witness identification documentation and send all fully completed Official Disclosure Scotland Vetting Forms to the relevant SYFA Protection Officer.

The PPO must receive and advise on reported incidents by a club, player or official.

The PPO must take action to ensure that all appropriate persons have been contacted following a reported incident. Any alleged incidents of abuse must be reported to the National Secretary or in his absence the National Protection Officer at Hampden Park.

Note: All persons involved in grassroots football have responsibilities to report any suspected or alleged cases of abuse to the relevant Protection Officer. It is not the official’s responsibility to decide whether or not a player has been abused.

5. IDENTIFICATION OF ABUSE

There are many different forms of abuse, the main categories being sexual abuse, physical abuse, neglect,emotional abuse,bullying.

A description of each of these, including the main characteristics, and what to look out for is contained in the SYFA Protection Policy (section 6).

All club members, parents and PPO’s are required to obtain copies of and familiarise themselves with this section and to report any concerns to the appropriate PPO.

6. DEALING WITH COMPLAINTS

Incidents of abuse may become known in a number of different ways e.g.:-

Reported abuse or suspicion of abuse by the child

Reported abuse or suspicion of abuse by a third party

Personal witnessing of an incident or having suspicion about an incident

The club advises that, when dealing with alleged complaints of abuse, the sequence of actions should be :-

Listen and re-assure Record Report

Advice on each of these, including what to do and what not to do, is contained in the SYFA Protection Policy (section 7).

All club officials, parents and PPO’s are required to obtain copies of and familiarise themselves with this section and to report any concerns to the appropriate PPO. It is the responsibility of the PPO to report to the National Secretary of the SYFA. It is also the responsibility of the PPO to liaise with the police and relevant authorities on who is contacted about the allegations.

7. APPLICATION AND SELECTION PROCEDURES

The selection/application process for any official seeking membership of the club [Management Committee] or a position as an official of the club shall be as follows:

1.The adult concerned should make verbal application to the appropriate age group, outlining his/her coaching experience, experience in relation to working with children, other clubs he/she has been involved with and the reasons he/she wishes to join the club.

2.The age group will hold a committee meeting and interview the person to determine if he/she is suitable to become an official of the club. The club should consider obtaining written details of his/her coaching experience, experience of working with children, the names and contacts of other clubs that the adult has been involved with and the reasons he/she wishes to join their club. The applicant must be prepared to confirm his/her identity.

3.The age group should then discuss the application for membership for the applicant and carry out an investigation into the information supplied by the applicant.

4.The age group may, after their investigation, ask the applicant to fill in a club membership/officials form giving the names and contact details of two separate individuals who are prepared to supply references plus details of any previous clubs. The club has the right to seek advice on suitability from any previous clubs of whom the applicant has been a member.

5.The club should write to each of the referees and examine their replies before accepting the applicant into provisional membership/acceptance as official ( Full membership/acceptance may only be awarded after final Disclosure Scotland clearance is obtained).

6.On acceptance into provisional membership/officialdom, the club must ensure that the officials complete a Disclosure Scotland Vetting Form and submit it to the relevant SYFA Protection Officer who will on approval send it directly to the National Secretary complete with any vetting fee. The National Secretary will submit the form for formal vetting to VDS.

7. All officials who know that they have criminal convictions as listed under Appendix A of the SYFA Player Protection policy or have any other criminal convictions or any relevant information to disclose must send a letter disclosing this information to the SYFA Protection Officer at Hampden Park. This letter must be sent to the SYFA Protection Officer within an envelope clearly marked PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL. The letter of Self-Disclosure must quote the name of the club plus the age group and club registration number.

All officials with criminal records covered under Appendix A of the SYFA Player Protection policy must submit a letter of Self-Disclosure. If they do not submit a letter of Self-Disclosure this will debar them from membership.

Any official who submits a letter of Self-Disclosure and provides false information and/or omits information will be debarred from membership.

8.The club will be advised on the SYFA Player Protection Panel’s decision regarding officials being accepted or rejected for membership. If the decision is for acceptance, the club will ratify full membership at a general meeting. If the decision is for rejection, the club will advise the applicant on appeal procedures and the applicant will remain a provisional member/official– if the applicant does not appeal to the SYFA or losses such an appeal, the applicant will have his/her provisional membership cancelled and they will not be allowed to be an official of the club.

9.If accepted into membership of the club or as an official, the new member will accept that the club will monitor and assess performance as to suitability for membership of the club. The club Constitution allows the club the right to discipline any member and/or official.

The selection/application process for all protection officers shall be as follows:

1. The official wishing to become Player Protection Officer must submit a Disclosure Scotland Vetting Form directly to the National Secretary unless advised by SYFA to submit to another SYFA official.

2. The official wishing to become Player Protection Officer must attend a meeting for identification purposes and interview if required.

All Disclosure Scotland Vetting Certificates will be returned to the National Secretary and submitted to the SYFA Player Protection Panel if required for a final decision on suitability for membership and the position of Player Protection Officer.

4. The club, league or association will be advised of the Player Protection Panel’s decision regarding officials being accepted or rejected for membership and the position of Player Protection Officer. If the decision is for acceptance, the club will ratify at a general meeting. If the decision is for rejection, the club will advise the applicant on appeal procedures and the applicant will remain a provisional member – if the applicant does not appeal to the SYFA or losses such an appeal, the applicant will not be allowed to be a PPO of the club.

8 . MEMBERSHIP AND REGISTRATION FORMS

SYFA

The club will comply with the requirements of the SYFA in completing the relevant forms – these will include the Disclosure Scotland vetting forms and the SYFA membership forms.

Troon Thistle YFC

The club will introduce membership and/or registration forms in line with the requirements of the Club Constitution and Player Protection Policy. These forms will also comply with the requirements of the SYFA Constitution and the SYFA Player Protection Policy and will ensure that vetting of officials is adhered to and that parents confirm acceptance of the club’s Constitution and Player Protection policy.