The Sport Welfare Officers will add capacity and expertise to the existing safeguarding work of NGBs and Active Partnerships. They will help further understand safeguarding in local clubs e.g. how policies and procedures are cascaded and help share good practice. They will work closely with other Sport Welfare Officers, National Governing Bodies of sport, and wider organisations; to connect people working on welfare and safeguarding, both inside and outside sport.

The network is being funded by Sport England using National Lottery grants.

Wesport has received funding for two new roles:

• Project Manager (Sport Welfare)
• Project Officer (Sport Welfare)

These roles will work closely together to complement the work of the existing safeguarding structure inside and outside sport. They may champion national safeguarding campaigns with local clubs, for example Keeping Your Child Safe in Sport week (inside sport) and Safeguarding Adults Week (outside sport).  They will work alongside the existing Wesport team.

They may also hold relationships with statutory services e.g. Local Authority Designated Officers (outside sport). They will raise awareness of safeguarding with parents/carers and participants either inside or outside sport.  The officers will share good practice locally and provide feedback to NGBs either sub-regionally, regionally or nationally (on either good or poor practice). The network of sport welfare officers will not replace the existing safeguarding work of Active Partnerships and NGBs but instead add capacity and expertise to it.

At national and local level the new roles will contribute to the establishment of good welfare practice with safer club environments for participants and sports clubs, moving from welfare compliance to effective safeguarding culture. These safer club environments will lead to inclusive, improved experiences for children and adults, narrowed inequalities and consistent, best practice across sport.