Sixpenny Handley Bowling Club

Definition of an Adult at Risk

We collect information about you when you apply/applied for membership of Sixpenny Handley Bowls Club, the information includes:

Adult at Risk is a person aged 18 or over who is in need of care and support regardless of whether they are receiving them, and because of those needs are unable to protect themselves against abuse or neglect. In recent years, there has been a marked shift away from using the term ‘vulnerable’ to describe adults potentially at risk from harm or abuse.

Abuse is a violation of an individual’s human and civil rights by another person or persons. See section 5 for further explanations.

Adult is anyone aged 18 or over.

Adult safeguarding is protecting a person’s right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect.

Capacity refers to the ability to make a decision at a particular time, for example when under considerable stress. The starting assumption must always be that a person has the capacity to make a decision unless it can be established that they lack capacity (MCA 2005). Safeguarding Bowls – January 2020 Types of Abuse taken from the Care Act 2014.

Self-neglect – this covers a wide range of behaviour: neglecting to care for one’s personal hygiene, health or surroundings and includes behaviour such as hoarding. In (insert name of your sport) this could be a player whose appearance becomes unkempt, does not wear suitable sports kit and deterioration in hygiene.

Modern Slavery – encompasses slavery, human trafficking, forced labour and domestic servitude. Traffickers and slave masters use whatever means they have at their disposal to coerce, deceive and force individuals into a life of abuse, servitude and inhumane treatment. In (insert name of your sport) you may notice that a participant in a team has been missing from practice sessions and is not responding to reminders from team members or coaches.

Domestic Abuse – including psychological, physical, sexual, financial and emotional abuse. It also includes so called 'honour' based violence. Sport may notice a power imbalance between a participant and a family member. For example, a participant with Downs syndrome may be looking quiet and withdrawn when their brother comes to collect them from sessions, in contrast to their personal assistant whom they greet with a smile.

Discriminatory – discrimination is abuse which centres on a difference or perceived difference particularly with respect to race, gender or disability or any of the protected characteristics of the Equality Act. This could be the harassing of a club member because they are or are perceived to be transgender.

Organisational Abuse – including neglect and poor care practice within an institution or specific care setting such as a hospital or care home, for example, or in relation to care provided in one’s own home. This may range from one off incidents to on-going ill treatment. It can be through neglect or poor professional practice as a result of the structure, policies, processes and practices within an organisation. In Bowls, this could be training without a necessary break.

Physical Abuse – includes hitting, slapping, pushing, kicking, misuse of medication, restraint or inappropriate sanctions. This could be a coach intentionally striking an athlete.

Sexual Abuse – including rape, indecent exposure, sexual harassment, inappropriate looking or touching, sexual teasing or innuendo, sexual photography, subjection to pornography or witnessing sexual acts, indecent exposure and sexual assault or sexual acts to which the adult has not consented or was pressured into consenting. This could be a fellow athlete who sends unwanted sexually explicit text messages to an adult with learning disabilities they are training alongside.

Financial or Material Abuse – including theft, fraud, internet scamming, coercion in relation to an adult’s financial affairs or arrangements, including in connection with wills, property, inheritance or financial transactions, or the misuse or misappropriation of property, possessions or benefits. This could be someone taking equipment from an athlete with dementia.

Neglect – including ignoring medical or physical care needs, failure to provide access to appropriate health social care or educational services, the withholding of the necessities of life, such as medication, adequate nutrition and heating. This could be a coach not ensuring athletes have access to water.

Emotional or Psychological Abuse – this includes threats of harm or abandonment, deprivation of contact, humiliation, blaming, controlling, intimidation, coercion, harassment, verbal abuse, isolation or withdrawal from services or supportive networks. This could be an athlete threatening another athlete with physical harm and persistently blaming them for poor performance.

Not included in the Care Act 2014 but also relevant:

Cyber Bullying - cyber bullying occurs when someone repeatedly makes fun of another person online or repeatedly picks on another person through emails or text messages, or uses online forums with the intention of harming, damaging, humiliating or isolating another person. It can be used to carry out many different types of bullying (such as racist bullying, homophobic bullying, or bullying related to special educational needs and disabilities) but instead of the perpetrator carrying out the bullying face-to-face, they use technology as a means to do it.

Forced Marriage - forced marriage is a term used to describe a marriage in which one or both of the parties are married without their consent or against their will. A forced marriage differs from an arranged marriage, in which both parties consent to the assistance of a third party in identifying a spouse. The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 make it a criminal offence to force someone to marry.

Mate Crime - a ‘mate crime’ as defined by the Safety Net Project is ‘when vulnerable people are befriended by members of the community who go on to exploit and take advantage of them. It may not be an illegal act but still has a negative effect on the individual.

Radicalisation - the aim of radicalisation is to attract people to their reasoning, inspire new recruits and embed their extreme views and persuade vulnerable individuals of the legitimacy of their cause. This may be direct through a relationship, or through social media.

Definition of Abuse (Children)

The definition of abuse regarding Children is over arching to the same policy for Adults but include Bullying – deliberately hurtful behaviour, usually repeated over a period of time, where it is difficult for those bullied to defend themselves. Bullying can take many forms but there are three main types:

Physical e.g. hitting, kicking, theft.

Verbal e.g. racist or homophobic remarks, threats, name calling.

Emotional e.g. isolating an individual from the activities and social acceptance of their group.

There are several signs that may indicate that children are being abused:

Unexplained or suspicious injuries, such as bruising, cuts or burns, particularly if situated on a part of the body not normally prone to such injuries.

An injury for which the explanation seems inconsistent.

The child describes what appears to be an abusive act involving him/her.

Someone else (a child or adult) expresses concern about the welfare of another child.

Inappropriate sexual awareness.

Displaying variations in eating patterns, including overeating or loss of appetite.

This list is not exhaustive and the presence of one or more of the indications is not proof that abuse is taking place. Some changes in behaviour can be caused by changes at home, for example, bereavement and parents are encouraged to inform the club coach or club Safeguarding Officer of any such circumstances.

Responsibilities and Communication

Sixpenny Handley Bowling Club Safeguarding Policy will be available to all members, parents, staff, volunteers and participants. It is important that adults at risk are protected from abuse. All complaints, allegations or suspicions must be taken seriously with the Club Safeguarding Officer passing information to the appropriate NGB Safeguarding Officer and informing the appropriate club staff where relevant.

The Club has responsibility for ensuring that the policy and procedures are implemented, including referring any appropriate disciplinary action to the national governing body as appropriate.

The Role of Key Individual Agencies

Adult Social Services - The Department of Health’s recent ‘No secrets’ guidance document requires that authorities develop a local framework within which all responsible agencies work together to ensure a coherent policy for the protection of vulnerable adults at risk of abuse.

All local authorities have a Safeguarding Adults Board, which oversees multi-agency work aimed at protecting and safeguarding vulnerable adults. It is normal practice for the board Safeguarding Bowls – January 2020 to comprise of people from partner organisations who have the ability to influence decision making and resource allocation within their organisation.

The Police - The Police play a vital role in Safeguarding Adults with cases involving alleged criminal acts. It becomes the responsibility of the police to investigate allegations of crime by preserving and gathering evidence. Where a crime is identified, the police will be the lead agency and they will direct investigations in line with legal and other procedural protocols.

Legal Framework

The Care Act 2014 enacted sets out a clear legal framework for how local authorities and other parts of the system should protect adults at risk of abuse or neglect. Each Local Authority must have a Safeguarding Adults Board (SAB), in much the same way of Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCB). They must lead a multi-agency system that seeks to prevent abuse and neglect and stop it quickly when it happens which includes the NHS, police and Social Care. The Safeguarding Adults Boards (SAB) must meet regularly, develop shared safeguarding plans and publish an annual review of progress. They will carry out Safeguarding Adults Reviews in some circumstances relating to safeguarding failures. The Act also introduces a responsibility for Local Authorities to make enquiries and take any necessary action if an adult with care and support needs could be at risk, even if that adult isn’t receiving local authority care and support.

The Protection of Freedoms Act 2012

Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims (Amendment) Act 2012

The Equality Act 2010

The Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006

Mental Capacity Act 2005

Sexual Offences Act 2003

The Human Rights Act 1998

The Data Protection Act 2018

Monitoring and Review

This policy will be reviewed one year after being introduced and then every three years or in response to significant new legislation by the Management Committee and amended as appropriate. Guidance from Bowls National Governing Bodies will be sought as part of the review process.

The policy will be monitored in partnership with the Bowls National Governing Bodies

Do you know who to contact?

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Safeguarding Bowls England

BCGBA

EIBA

EBF

ESMBA

ECBA

BDA