Safeguarding in Sport Week returned for its second year in 2026, bringing together clubs, coaches, volunteers and partners from across London to share learning and strengthen welfare practice across sport and physical activity.
Engagement across the week more than doubled compared with last year. Through online sessions, workshops and conversations across the sector, there was clear appetite to keep learning from each other and continuing to strengthen safeguarding practice across London.
We heard a wide range of reflections about what helps create environments where people feel safe, supported and able to take part in sport and physical activity.
This article draws on insights shared during the Positive Club Culture session as part of London Sport’s Safeguarding in Sport Week 2026.
Three Quick Takeaways
If you only have a minute, here are three points to reflect on:
- Culture shows up most clearly when things aren’t going well.
- Welfare is shaped by small, consistent actions.
- Creating a safe environment is something we all contribute to.
“You rarely see culture problems clearly from the inside. Problems grow quietly in spaces leaders don’t always have access to, until someone finally speaks up.”
Across clubs in London, we’ve seen this play out in different sports and at different levels. Often, the signs were there. They just hadn’t been noticed yet. Performance still matters. But more and more, parents and participants are also paying attention to how a club feels.
When things don’t go to plan.
When someone makes a mistake.
When a young person seems quieter than usual.
This is where culture shows up.Policies, procedures as a named Club Welfare Officer are important. They give structure and clarity. But the day-to-day experience of a club is shaped far more by everyday behaviour and environment than by documents.
In practice, culture is revealed in small moments. How feedback is received. Whether someone feels comfortable raising a concern. How a coach responds when something doesn’t go well. These moments are rarely dramatic, but they matter.
Volunteers tend to care deeply about the young people and adults they support. At the same time, managing sessions, organising teams and juggling limited time and resource, it can be hard to step back and notice how things feel from a participant’s perspective.
Taking that step back occasionally makes a difference.
Feeling Safe to Speak Up
Creating an environment where people feel safe to speak up is a key part of good welfare practice. Sometimes this is described as “psychological safety”, but in simple terms it means this: do people feel able to ask for help, raise a concern or admit a mistake without worrying about how they will be treated afterwards?
Most clubs would say that mistakes are part of learning. What matters is how those moments are handled in practice.
For example, if a young athlete questions a drill or says they feel uncomfortable, how is that received? If a parent raises a concern, is there space for that conversation without it feeling confrontational?
When people feel able to raise things early, small issues are far less likely to grow. If concerns never surface, it can be harder to understand what is really happening.
Early signals are often subtle. A drop in confidence. Someone becoming quieter than usual. A parent lingering at the end of a session. These moments are easy to miss when everyone is focused on keeping things running smoothly.
Strengthening welfare practice does not require a major overhaul. Often, it comes down to consistent, visible behaviours. Including welfare as a standing item in meetings.
Making it clear that raising concerns is welcome. A coach acknowledging when they could have handled something better.Over time, those small actions shape what a club feels like to the people who are part of it.
Safe and positive cultures are built through what is practised, week after week.
Next in the series: How thinking about welfare as prevention, rather than reaction, can help clubs feel more confident and funding-ready.
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