Players compete for the ball during FA People's Cup

Safeguarding at Amateur FA

LET'S KEEP FOOTBALL SAFE

The Amateur FA is dedicated to creating a safe and fun environment for all children, young people and adults to participate in football.

Individually and collectively, we are signed up to The FA’s Safeguarding Policy and Procedures, and we are committed to safeguarding children and young people within football. 

Why is safeguarding so important? 

Safeguarding children and adults at risk is at the centre of everything we do. We want children and adults at risk in our clubs to feel safe, relaxed and comfortable so they can get on with playing the beautiful game that is football.

Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility and therefore we work hard to ensure all our participants are aware of the FA’s safeguarding policies and procedures. Being equipped with the right safeguarding knowledge can help us all contribute to a safer and better experience for all!

The Amateur FA has its own Designated Safeguarding Officer (DSO). Should you have any queries or concerns or an issue that needs to be raised please contact the DSO on safeguarding@amateur-fa.com or 07904649876.

Should the DSO not be available, please contact another member of the team.

If the matter is urgent, please contact the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000 or police on 999.

For a full guide to safeguarding, please download our safeguarding booklet.

amateur fa safeguarding policy

amateur fa adults at risk policy

afa safeguarding booklet

complete directory to best practice & guidance

If you need to complete a DBS check, please see here for more information.

The Amateur FA believes that the mental health and wellbeing agenda is an important topic to support.

For further information about mental health and to see what support is available, please download our mental health and wellbeing booklet.

mental health and wellbeing booklet

Get in Touch

Visit our HELPDESK to find answers to our frequently answered questions, including safeguarding contact details.

If your query cannot be answered, please submit a ticket.

You can also visit the FA Grassroots Technology Forum for help with FA IT systems.

How can you help us?


Tell us


We rely on our participants and members to report anything which causes concern about the welfare of a child / children. Therefore we ask you to remain vigilant and report any concerns to your club welfare officer or the AFA’s Designated Safeguarding Officer on 020 8122 0147.

If you have an immediate concern please contact the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000 or police on 999..

Follow the codes

The Respect code of conduct is in place to ensure everyone involved in football is playing their part to give players a positive experience.

Here at the AFA we encourage all our participants to follow the codes to ensure an excellent experience for all.

 

Codes of Conduct

adults & players

match officials

Coaches, team managers & Club official


Become a Welfare Officer


Welfare officers play a vital role in ensuring our clubs/leagues run smoothly and that our young people are protected.

If you are someone who enjoys working with children and young people, likes to learn new things and has a passion for improving the game then this could be the right role for you!

For more information on how to become a Club Welfare Officer and what it involves click here.

Feedback 

We are always looking to improve the way we do things and really value feedback from all our participants. So if you have an idea or some feedback on how we do things here at the AFA please do not hesitate to let us know by completing our feedback form.

Whistleblowing

The Amateur FA, along with The FA are committed to providing an exceptional service and conducting all business affairs in both a professional and ethical manner.

What Is Whistleblowing?

In its simplest form, whistleblowing is the term used when an employee or volunteer passes on information concerning wrongdoing. The action of whistleblowing is sometimes called ‘blowing the whistle’.

Who is protected by law?

The law provides protection for those who raise legitimate concerns about specified matters, known as qualifying disclosures. A qualifying disclosure is one made in the public interest if an employee has a reasonable belief that: 

  • fraud and/or money laundering;
  • a bribe, offered or received;
  • a criminal offence;
  • a miscarriage of justice;
  • an act creating risk to health and safety;
  • an act causing damage to the environment;
  • breach of any laws, regulations, other legal obligations or The FA Group's policies or procedures; or
  • other serious risk that threatens clients, colleagues, the public, the environment, or The FA Group's reputation; and
  • concealment of any of the above; is being, has been, or is likely to be committed.

It is not necessary for you to have proof that such an act is being, has been, or is likely to be, committed - a reasonable belief is sufficient. Please be aware that you have no responsibility for investigating the matter as it is The FA Group's responsibility to ensure that an investigation takes place.

The Amateur FA supports The FA’s Whistle-blowing policy (as described in this paragraph), which requires any adult or young person with concerns about an adult in a position of trust within football can ‘whistle blow’ by:

The Amateur FA encourages anyone with a whistleblowing concern to get in touch. if you have a whistleblowing concern, please download the full FA whistleblowing guide by clicking here.