Each month in our newsletter, we pose a Safeguarding Scenario, asking what you or your club would do in a hypothetical situation. In this article, we share this month’s scenario alongside the Sport Welfare Officer’s response.
The Scenario
An adult player in the first team of your club advises that they were arrested at the weekend, stating that they were in their friend’s car, and that having been stopped by the Police, drugs were found belonging to their friend. Both were arrested, and are currently under Police investigation for ‘possession with intent to supply Class A drugs’.
The individual has no position of trust roles over children and there are no bail conditions in place preventing any contact with children.
The SWO Response
Whilst the individual has not been found guilty, or even charged, this is a serious criminal offence, and a matter which should be reported to your club’s governing body, for a decision to be made at that level about whether any action needs to be taken. This could include the governing body preventing the individual from being involved in the sport in the interim period, if upon gathering further information, it is assessed that the individual may pose a potential risk of harm to others in the sport, particularly children and adults at risk.
Whilst we know that the individual has said to the club that the drugs were not theirs, we must consider that the player is likely to say this, as they will not want to be prevented from continuing to be involved in the sport.
In many sports, adults will play alongside 16- and 17-year-olds, so whilst they may not be in a position of trust role, the player may still be someone who could be influential toward those children. Young players who are hoping to make it into the first team, or at a more elite level, are potentially vulnerable to exploitation. They may be easily convinced by someone they view as powerful and influential, such as a first team player, to be involved in behaviours such as handling or dealing drugs, for example, if they think this could help them achieve this goal. At this early stage, it should be considered that children could be put at risk of being exploited by the individual who was arrested.
We also know that people who play sports may also be involved in other areas of sport, such as coaching; by informing your governing body of this matter, they can do relevant checks to see if the individual is involved in position of trust roles at another club, which your club may have been unaware of.
If there are no restrictions placed on the individual by your governing body, then it may be a club decision as to whether the individual continues to be involved whilst a Police investigation continues. Equally, if the player is found guilty of such an offence, and is given a Community Order or a fine for example, there may still be no restrictions on their involvement in the sport as a player, so again your club would need to consider whether it is suitable for the individual to be involved. What one club decides may be different to what another may decide. Clubs should also consider their codes of conduct in such situations, in terms of whether actions and behaviours by a player may have breached the club’s code of conduct.
If you come across a similar situation at a club or group which is not affiliated to a governing body, then you can seek guidance from safeguarding leads within your local authority, which you will be available to find online.
