The Isle of Man Cricket Association (IOMCA) Safeguarding and Protecting Children
Policy Statement
• The IOMCA is committed to ensuring that all children who take part in cricket, have a safe positive and fun experience, whatever their level of involvement.
• The welfare of all children is paramount.
• All children within cricket, regardless of age, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, ability or disability, have the right to enjoy the game in an environment safe from abuse of any kind.
• The IOMCA recognises the importance of safeguarding children within the game and is
committed to developing, and implementing, policies and procedures which ensure that
everyone knows, and accepts, their responsibility in relation to a duty of care for children.
• The IOMCA is committed to ensuring there are correct and comprehensive procedures for responding to, recording and reporting child safeguarding concerns.
• The IOMCA will endeavour to ensure that all suspicions and allegations will be taken seriously, managed and dealt with swiftly and appropriately in line with IOMSCB policy and procedures.
The IOMCA encourage anyone with concerns to contact us. You can do this by emailing iomcricketsecretary@hotmail.com and ask to speak to someone regarding safeguarding. If a child is at serious and immediate risk, do not hesitate to contact the Police or Government Services.
• The IOMCA recognises that appropriate safeguarding is not just about preventing abuse but providing the best environment for children to enjoy themselves and the game of cricket.
• The IOMCA is committed to ensuring that safeguarding and protecting children is central to its development of the game and as such requires all clubs and other bodies who wish to seek IOMCA support, whether financial or otherwise, for developing facilities and/or opportunities to play the game of cricket, to have adopted and implemented their policies.
• It is a mandatory requirement that all affiliated clubs must adopt and implement these policies and they will be supported to do so through education and training.
• All affiliated clubs must appoint a Club Welfare Officer to ensure that appropriate procedures are followed.
• The IOMCA is committed to promoting sound recruitment procedures and good practice for all individuals working within cricket whether in a paid or voluntary capacity.
• The IOMCA will ensure that individuals, who work with children in a paid or voluntary capacity, will receive support through education and training, to be aware of, and understand, best practice and how to manage any safeguarding issues which may come to light.
The IOMCA recognises that it is not the responsibility of those individuals working in cricket to determine if abuse has taken place, but it is their responsibility to act upon and report any concerns.
It is a mandatory requirement for all IOMCA affiliated clubs to make a constitutional
adoption of a Safeguarding Policy. It may be necessary for clubs to make amendments to their constitution to reflect the safeguarding principles, which they must adhere to.
A vote is normally needed at the club’s AGM to make this formal adoption. For
those clubs who do not have an AGM in the foreseeable future, it is
good practice for the committee to make a temporary adoption on behalf of the club as
an interim measure.
In addition to adopting a safeguarding policy, creating an individual “Club Safeguarding Policy Statement” is a requirement for all IOMCA affiliated clubs.
The Safeguarding Policy Statement and Underpinning Principles guide the safeguarding programme. We subscribe to the “SCB Inter Agency Child Protection Procedures” and endorse and adopt the procedural guidance contained in that document.
The key principles of The Safeguarding Children Board (SCB) are that:
- the child’s safety is, and must always be, the paramount consideration
- all children and young people have a right to be protected from abuse regardless of their age, gender, disability, race, sexual orientation, faith or belief
- all suspicions and allegations of abuse will be taken seriously and responded to swiftly and appropriately
- working in partnership with other organisations, children and young people and their parents/carers is essential. We acknowledge that every child or young person who plays or participates in sport should be able to take part in an enjoyable and safe environment and be protected from poor practice and abuse. The Isle of Man Cricket Association recognises that this is the responsibility of every adult involved in the organisation.
However, in addition, there are several key Points of Policy on the Safeguarding Programme that the IOMCA needs to ensure that clubs and participants understand are fundamental to the effectiveness of safeguarding in cricket.
1. All cricket participants should recognise and follow a Code of Conduct.
The IOMCA provides codes of conduct for all cricket participants – the Code of Conduct
for players, parents and guiding principles for managers and coaches. These codes of
conduct provide participants with details of acceptable, and unacceptable behaviour,
and the expectations of others in relation to good operational practices.
2. All junior cricket sessions require adequate supervision. These requirements are available in the Welfare Definitions document.
3. All adults who work with children in cricket, either as a volunteer or paid,
must be recruited appropriately, which includes being vetted for their suitability to work with children. Vetting Procedures include the use of Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks and/ or non-UK equivalents.
4. Physical contact should always be intended to meet the child’s needs - not the adult’s
It is obvious that adults should never touch a child inappropriately. A responsible adult should only use physical contact if it’s aim is to:
• Develop sports skills or techniques
• Treat an injury
• Prevent an injury or accident from occurring
• Meet the requirements of the sport
The adult should seek to explain the reason for the physical contact to the child, reinforcing the teaching or coaching skill. Unless the situation is an emergency, the adult should ask the child for permission.