AQW 45393/22-27


Ms Sian Mulholland
Alliance Party
North Antrim


Tabled Date: 01/05/2026
Answered On Date: 19/05/2026
Priority Written: No


Question:
To ask the Minister for Communities to detail any (i) statutory; (ii) regulatory; (iii) funding; (iv) affiliation; and(v) facility-use, requirements that apply to sports clubs and sporting organisations in relation to (a) child safeguarding policies; (b) designated safeguarding officers; (c) safer recruitment; (d) training; and (e) reporting procedures.


Answer:
This issue is an operational matter for Sport NI, they have advised me as follows:
“Within the sports sector, Sport NI work in partnership with the NSPCC’s Child Protection in Sport Unit to ensure all funded Sports Governing Bodies through the Sport System Investment program meet safeguarding standards that are in place for the voluntary sector.
This would include and is not limited to National Governing Bodies (NGB) having child safeguarding policies, an NGB designated safeguarding officer, safer recruitment procedures to include vetting via AccessNI, attendance at safeguarding training, and that they have clear reporting procedures in place.
DfC facilitate a bi-annual safeguarding forum for all arm’s length bodies including Sport NI to ensure all bodies are up to date with any new regulations or good practice. Sport NI and DfC are represented on the Safeguarding in Sport Strategic Group, which is chaired by an independent safeguarding expert, Marcella Leonard MBE.
This group works with statutory agencies to examine any gaps in safeguarding and improve communication and trust between the voluntary sports sector and statutory agencies. Representatives from the Safeguarding Sport Strategic Group are engaging with the Department of Health to tighten the law around vetting here in NI to make vetting a legal requirement, as it is already in Scotland and the Republic of Ireland. But currently if a sports organisation is not influenced by the regulations linked to funding, set by Sport NI there is nothing further DfC can do.
The closing of any gap to place legal requirements and regulations on sports/voluntary or statutory agencies to adopt safeguarding best practice remains with the Dept of Health.
SOLACE made a recommendation to all NI council’s, to introduce minimum safeguarding standards for those organisations who want to hire a council facility or apply for a council grant to work with children. This will encourage more voluntary sports clubs to improve their practice.”