Safeguarding

Safeguarding at West Bridgford Tennis Club

The LTA requires Tennis Registered Venues to meet agreed minimum safeguarding standards.

WBTC has implemented all of the safeguarding standards.

Standard 1: Safeguarding Policies

Have a set of clear safeguarding policies that have been implemented within the venue

Standard 2: Safeguarding Awareness

Ensure that there is strong awareness within the venue of safeguarding, the requisite policies and how to report a concern

Standard 3: Safeguarding Culture

Have a Welfare Officer who has undergone the necessary training, is engaged in their role and collaborating with others in the venue to embed a positive safeguarding culture.

Standard 4: Staff, Coaches and Volunteers

Ensure that relevant roles within the venue have completed a satisfactory criminal records check and that any coaches qualified to Level 2 or above are LTA Accredited or Accredited+

Standard 5: Procedure

Ensure that safeguarding is embedded into the venue’s operations and safeguarding risks are considered when running activities and events

safeguarding - Policy

Our safeguarding policy is reviewd by the Welfare Officers and the Committee every three years.

https://www.westbridgfordtennisclub.co.uk/club-rules-policies

Our code of conduct sets out the principles of the Club and can also be viewed here:

https://www.westbridgfordtennisclub.co.uk/club-rules-policies

Safeguarding - Awareness

Safeguarding is all about: having the knowledge and awareness to understand various types of abuse and neglect, what to look for and being able to identify the signs, knowing what steps to take if you suspect abuse, knowing what to do if a child or an adult tell you they are being abused.

All WBTC Coaches have LTA Accreditation which means they have all had Safeguarding training
Additionally, the two Welfare Officers have full safeguarding training as do our referees
All members of the Committee have also undertaken a safeguarding awareness introduction and members of our Bar staff have updates in team meetings from our Welfare Officers.

The Club promotes its committment to safeguarding through open communication about the poilcy and positive messages via social media, website and on site materials to keep all members up to date.

Safeguarding - Culture

At WBTC safeguarding is key to every area and we encourage all to recognise that everyone is responsible for safeguarding.

We have two Welfare Officers who have undergone the necessary training. They are engaged in their role and collaborating with others in the venue to embed a positive safeguarding culture.

The Welfare Officer will:

Work with others in the club to promote safeguarding, diversity and inclusion, and ensure compliance with the LTA’s minimum standards for venue registration are met.
Work with others in the club to ensure safeguarding and diversity and inclusion information, including policies, reporting procedures and details of the venue Welfare Officer are visible and readily available.
Work with others in the club to promote the venue’s Code of Conduct(s)
Ensure safeguarding and inclusion is on the agenda at committee meetings.
Act as the first point of contact for all children and adults where concerns about welfare, discrimination, poor practice or abuse are identified.
Work with the LTA Safeguarding Team when concerns arise within the venue.
Maintain contact details for the LTA Safeguarding Team and key statutory agencies.
Contact the Local Authority children’s or adults’ social care teams and the police about concerns where appropriate.
Work with the LTA Safeguarding Team to facilitate support visits of the venue in relation to the minimum standards.

Safeguarding - Staff, Coaches & Volunteers

LTA Coach accreditation means a coach has a recognised qualification, satisfactory DBS check, safeguarding training and first aid training. This is required for all level 2 and above qualified coaches

Level 1 qualified coaches do not lead sessions, but are all DBS checked

Other officials that we have at the Club from time to time, such as referees of tournaments are also DBS checked as part of their referee qualification

Safeguarding - Procedure

Safeguarding is considered in all we do at WBTC

All types of abuse that occur in society also occur in tennis and the sport is not immune from it. The LTA Safeguarding Team deals with cases relating to all the types of abuse and examples provided.
Any concern should be reported to the Welfare Officer [email protected] and can be directly reported to the LTA via the secure online form or via email ([email protected]).
If the concern is urgent or out of office hours, the emergency services should be contacted on 999, or 101 for non-emergencies. You can also contact the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000.

At WBTC:

All staff and Tennis Helpers receive a safeguarding induction
The Committee include safeguarding at each of their meetings
Updates and information from the Welfare Officers to both staff and Committee are on a regular basis
Risk assessments of activities are carried out at the Club