As yet another sporting national governing body (NGB) fails to protect children (Football sexual abuse report: FA ‘did not do enough to keep children safe’, 17 March), can we finally expect action to take safeguarding complaints out of their hands? Time and again NGBs have been unwilling, or unable, to meet their duty of care to young people.
Meanwhile, the recommendations of Tanni Grey-Thompson’s 2017 duty of care in sport review gather dust. One of the review’s priority recommendations was the setting up of a sports ombudsman or sports duty of care commissioner. It also made a number of recommendations about safeguarding training, to improve skills in identifying abuse and bullying and build confidence to act appropriately.
Grassroots sports clubs, with tens of thousands of volunteers every week engaging young people in sport, are shining jewels, but with a cutting edge. Recent personal experience in speaking out about inadequate protection and poor practice is of club ostracism and labelling of complainants as the problem. Pride in the club, its reputation within that sport, and loyalty to influential officials and parental cliques, are significant barriers to objectivity and hearing children’s concerns.
Having reluctantly escalated club concerns to the sport’s NGB, we were stonewalled and fobbed off for two years. The effort of pursuing issues was overwhelming. Without resources to pay for solicitors, it is a David and Goliath situation; we were told most people give up. Even when resolutions were reached and internal review recommendations made, there was a pick-and-mix approach by the NGB in implementing them. Sadly, the priority seems to be limiting reputational impact, not assuring ongoing protection.
An independent sporting ombudsman would be a considerable first step in challenging the existing culture and influencing clubs and NGBs to do the right thing.
Dorothy Muir
Chagford, Devon
