Sporting organizations plan their programming and events. They decide who will participate, where and how, what equipment is needed, and what the schedule is, etc. But they also must consider where and how something could go wrong.
Risk assessment helps sporting organizations identify potential risks, threats, and vulnerabilities to participant safety BEFORE harm occurs. They help examine an environment, activity, program, and event from a safeguarding perspective and determine mitigation strategies and safeguards to reduce those risks.
This concept is likely already familiar to sporting organizations when it comes to physical safety. For example, ensuring the pool water is safe, the equipment is safe, fire alarms are in place, first aid kits are available, and weather-related stipulations are in place.
Safeguarding against abuse and misconduct needs the same proactive attention.
Furthermore, safeguarding risk assessments inform safeguarding policies and procedures and how they are operationalized in the sporting environment where interactions occur.
Each sporting organization and environment is unique; thus, safeguarding risks are unique. They depend on the sport, the participants involved, organizational culture, travel, accommodations, technology, staffing, etc.
Prevention starts with identifying risks, as it's hard to prevent risks you haven’t considered.
Best practices for risk assessments:
- Conduct physical safety AND safeguarding risk assessments regularly – whenever programming or environments change, and annually. Risk changes.
- Be specific – for example, you may have a safeguarding policy prohibiting one-on-one interactions between adults and minors, but how does this apply in real-life situations, like when the last athlete is waiting to be picked up from practice?
- Engage all stakeholders – organizational staff will have a different perspective than coaches, athletes, parents, and volunteers. Evaluate risk from all participants’ perspectives, and make sure their voices are heard.
The following are examples of risk assessments organizations can use as a starting point for practicing risk management.
- Athlete Surveys for Assessing Risk
- Organizations can use this survey to include athlete voices, better understand their experiences of the sporting environment, and understand risks from their perspectives.
- For use by any sporting organization on a regular basis. Distribute the survey via an online anonymous form through organizational social media, newsletters, or at the beginning and end of each season.
- Risk Assessment Mapping Exercise
- This tool provides a simple and quick way to practice and introduce safeguarding risk assessment. This informal exercise helps organizational staff and participants view their sporting environments through a safeguarding lens.
- For entry-level use by sporting organizations and community members to visualize and think about risk in their sporting environment.
- Safeguarding Essentials Template Risk Assessment
- This broad-strokes baseline tool provides organizations with step-by-step instructions for conducting a risk assessment and automatically produces a completed one.
- For use by organizations that want a simple and quick assessment template.
- General Sports Program Safeguarding Risk Assessment Template
- This detailed, thorough tool provides organizations with granular questions and risk categories, plus step-by-step instructions for completing a risk assessment for sporting programs.
- For use by community clubs, youth and adult sport programs, academies, leagues, and similar organizations across all sports. This risk assessment reviews the full program—not only the playing environment—including governance, coaching, facilities, travel, digital communication, reporting, athlete wellbeing, families, and organizational culture.
- Sports Training Facility/Sports Camp Safeguarding Risk Assessment Template
- This detailed, thorough tool provides organizations with granular questions, risk categories, and step-by-step instructions to complete a risk assessment for sporting training centers and sports camps.
- For use across sports training facilities, academies, training centers, day camps, residential/overnight camps, and sport development programs. Complete this risk assessment before programming begins and review whenever staffing, athletes, activities, accommodation, transport, venues, or conditions change.
- Event Safeguarding Risk Assessment Template
- This detailed, thorough tool provides organizations with a risk assessment specific to sporting events. Events are different environments that may involve new participants and jurisdictions. Granular questions, risk categories, and step-by-step instructions are included.
- For organizations to use before an athletic event/competition. Adapt sport-specific items as needed.
Download this Risk Assessments document for clear instructions, templates, and supporting resources.
If you don't know where to start, want a custom risk assessment template for your organization, or want #WeRideTogether to conduct a risk assessment for you, reach out to info@weridetogether.today. Remember, all safeguarding support is provided FREE of charge.
Kathryn McClain, MSW, MBA
Program and Partnerships Director at #WeRideTogether
kmcclain@weridetogether.today
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