Child Safeguarding Training is now a mandatory requirement in law for those who work with children. This requirement applies to our coaches, managers and others who fulfil a role of responsibility or a regulated role with children, on our behalf. The Gaelic Games Associations deliver three levels of safeguarding training:
Safeguarding 1: Child Protection in Sport Awareness Workshop is a face to face workshop primarily for coaches, managers and mentors of underage teams.
Safeguarding 2: Club Children’s Officer Workshop.
Safeguarding 3: Designated Liaison Person’s Workshop.
The three training programmes are based on the Sport Ireland/Sport NI safeguarding programmes and have been enhanced so as to reflect the contents of our Code of Behaviour (Underage) and the Guidance for Dealing and Reporting Allegations or Concerns of Abuse and the general ethos of our Associations, our procedures and our practices.
All three programmes are delivered in workshop format with attendees receiving a recognised certificate of attendance which is valid forthree years. All workshops are delivered by qualified Safeguarding Tutors under the direction of our Child Safeguarding Training Committee Any person working on our behalf as a coach/ mentor, a Children’s Officer or a DLP must have attended the recognised child safeguarding training programme relevant to their roles.
If a person has attended a non-Gaelic Games Child Protection Safeguarding 1 Workshop with another Sports Association or a Local Sports Partnership (LSP) they must then, in advance of taking up a role as an underage coach, undertake the new on-line Child Safeguarding Programme so as to familiarise themselves with our agreed safeguarding policies, procedures and in particular our joint Code of Behaviour (Underage) or they may attend the Gaelic Games Safeguarding 1 Workshop.
Online Refresher
The new on-line training programme is available free of charge by accessing https://www.gaa. ie/the-gaa/child-welfare-and-protection/ safeguarding-training
The Gaelic Games Associations also provide safeguarding training for referees and for stewards as part of their internal training courses.
