Plan for 2020/21 season
We are looking for 2 x volunteers to take on this role for the new season. We have 1 person interested but would like another volunteer

If interested in this role, please email the Chairperson stating the role that you are interested in carrying out

Section
Player Welfare

Role Purpose
Work alongside the Senior Club Welfare Officer and other Club Welfare Officers within the club

To be clear about the club’s responsibilities when running activities for children and young people. This involves assisting the Senior Club Welfare Officer in:

ensuring these responsibilities are well understood by others
working with Welfare Officers within other sections of the Club
promoting The FA’s Respect Programme and helping to develop best practice processes

If the Senior Club Welfare Officer is unavailable there may be a requirement to liaise with the League and County FA Welfare Officers.

To help club personnel understand what their ‘duty of care’ towards children and young people actually means and entails on a day-to-day basis. In order to carry out your responsibilities you need to:

Understand:

the policies that have been put into place across the club including the safeguarding children policy, anti-bullying policy and equality policy.
what the Respect Programme aims to do
the benefits of implementing the Respect codes
the quick wins to be gained by using The FA’s safeguarding children best practice guidance (e.g. Travel, Trips and Tournaments, Photography guidelines, Anti-bullying Policy and Safeguarding Children Policy Template)
why certain roles require an FA CRB check and how The FA CRB process works
how to refer a concern about the welfare of a child

Encourage:

parents to complete the Respect education programme
coaches and team managers to listen to their players thoughts, ideas and views

Monitor:

repeated incidents of poor behaviour and liaise with the Senior Club Welfare Officer.

What sort of tasks are involved?

Assist the club to fulfil its responsibilities to safeguard children and Vulnerable Adults
Assist the club to implement its Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy.
Assist in ensuring that the club implements the reporting and recording procedures.
Promote the club’s codes of conducts within the club.
Ensure confidentiality is maintained.
Work with the clubs other Welfare Officers in their roles

How much time will I have to give to the role?
This is dependent on the amount of additional CWOs we can recruit. The role tends to be quiet for long periods but if a serious event occurs, you might need to give up numerous hours over a short period of time.

Other information about the role
To be effective as welfare officer it’s vital that everyone in your section of the club knows who you are and how you can be contacted especially by the players, parents and coaches. You should know the coaches and managers within your section of the club.

Ideally, we would have a team of 2 or 3 people taking on this role, working with and reporting to the Senior Club Welfare Officer. Most of the time, the role does not demand much time, but having colleagues to work alongside when there is something serious to investigate is helpful. There is also the possibility that accusations are made against people involved in your child's team and you feel it inappropriate to be involved so having others who can do this is vital.

Certifications Required

Attend the FA Safeguarding Children and Welfare Officer Workshops
Have an in-date FA Accepted Enhanced with Children's Barring List Check