Helping sporting clubs apply National Child Safe Principles
Sport Integrity Australia (SIA) has created a new guide to introduce clubs to the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations and how they apply to sport.
The guide 'Creating safer sport for children and young people: How to apply the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations',
helps clubs to provide safer sporting opportunities and environments for children and young people.
The National Principles for Child Safe Organisations set out a nationally consistent approach to promoting a culture of child safety and wellbeing within organisations.
The principles reflect the child safe standards that were recommended by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse and bring attention to general child safety and wellbeing issues.
SIA’s Director of Safeguarding, Lisa Purves, said the National Principles and the subsequent guide produced by SIA equip sporting clubs with a framework that works to prevent and protect children from harm and abuse.
“This new guide provides practical examples of how to embed child safeguarding practices into sport clubs and prevent harm and abuse from occurring,” Ms Purves said.
“They are not set out in order of importance but instead work together to reinforce the value of providing a safe and welcoming environment for children and young people.
“We want to help sporting clubs to implement the principles continually and guide ongoing improvement.”
By using this guide to act on the principles, sporting clubs will:
- Build safer and more positive environments for children and young people
- Minimise risks of abuse and harm to children and young people
- Enhance a sporting culture that prioritises child safeguarding
- Set a benchmark for current child safeguarding capability, helping to guide ongoing improvement.
Download the guide now:
Learn more:
Catch up on our recent ‘Practical Implementation of the Child Safe Principles in Sport’ webinar held on Thursday, 13 March 2025.
Ella McConnell, Child Safety Officer at the Sorrento Cricket Club in Victoria, introduced the National Principles, how they apply to sport, and practical actions clubs can take to embed them to minimise the risk of abuse and harm to children and young people.
