Safeguarding in The British Aikido Federation

Safeguarding is a very broad term, so I thought I should take a moment to explain the new safeguarding set up in the BAF.

At the recent BAF AGM, I was appointed as the designated safeguarding lead and Andrew Peterson as the DBS safe recruitment officer. We are both responsible for passing on information and offering support to anyone in the BAF who has questions or concerns about standards of care at all levels.

This means students, instructors, parents or anyone involved in any capacity in our organisation, can contact us directly with their concerns or questions, which will be listened to.

People are inclined to think mainly of the negatives when it comes to safeguarding. Often they start to look at the information available, and can feel overwhelmed by the subject matter and concerned they will be forced to have discussions about matters they are uncomfortable with.

The main purpose of the roles is to ensure our clubs and organisation have the highest standards of care for their members.

A factor to consider is that when people are looking for a club, they want reassurance that safeguarding is a part of the structure, so including it in any advertising can make the difference, and help when recruiting new members.

We also have a process in place for anyone who wants to become a Club Welfare Officer (in England). They will be liaising with us through the safeguarding network so will have the most up to date information when it comes to safeguarding which will help their clubs thrive. Max Kebe from the Manchester Dojo has already successfully completed the process and is now an active Club Welfare Officer.

Safeguarding is a large topic, and I hope our members feel reassured that there are people you can approach to get sensible information and advice about any concerns, be it low level or serious.

Please feel free to get in touch with myself or Andrew though the links provided.

Safeguarding | BAF

Russell Milton