Children's Officer

Child Protection and Welfare

The welfare and protection of children is paramount to everything that we do. It is our responsibility to ensure that children’s early experiences in sporting and cultural activities are fun and positive, irrespective of their age, gender, ability or ethnic background.

Aldi Community Games has demonstrated its commitment to the welfare and protection of all children, by ensuring that all policies and procedures are in line with current best practice and with current legislation. All policies and procedures have been developed in accordance with the Irish Sports Council and the Sports Council for Northern Ireland’s Code of Ethics, and legislation from the Department of Justice and the Department of Children and Youth Affairs.

Code of Ethics Training and Child Protection in Awareness Training

Aldi Community Games recommends that all volunteers and staff working with children attend the Code of Ethics Training delivered by the Local Sports Partnerships in the Republic of Ireland or the Child Protection Awareness Training delivered by the Child Protection in Sport Unit of the NSPCC in Northern Ireland. For more information on either of these courses please click the links below:

Safeguarding Guidance for Children and Young People
LSP - Local Sports Partnerships
CPSU - Child Protection in Sport Unit

Irish Sports Council - New Code of Ethics App "SAFE SPORT APP" - see video below

Safe Sport App from Irish Sports Council on Vimeo.

Children's Officer

The National Children’s Officer provides support and advice to all County and Area Children’s Officer in all areas relating to child welfare and protection and vetting and safe recruitment of volunteers. Please click here to send an email to our National Children's Officer.

Each County must appoint a County Children’s Officer and it is also recommended that each Area appoint a Children’s Officer.

The Roles and Responsibilities of the Children’s Officer

To promote awareness of the Code of Ethics and Good Practice for Children’s Sport within all personnel of the Club, and among young members and their parents/guardians
To influence policy and practice within the club in order to prioritise children’s needs
Establish contact with the National Children’s Officer
To ensure that children know how to make their concerns known to the appropriate adults or agencies
To encourage the appropriate involvement of parents/guardians in Area and County activities
To advise and provide support to the Sports Leaders/Coaches and volunteers on best practice in children’s sport
To report regularly to Area or County Management Committee on any updates as directed by the National Children’s Officer
To monitor changes in membership and follow-up on any unusual dropout, absenteeism or transfers by children or sports leaders/coaches and volunteers
To ensure that the children have a voice in the running of their activities and ensure that there are steps young people can take to express concerns about their sports activities/experiences
Establish communication with other branches of the Area/County, e.g. facilitate parent’s information sessions at the start of the season
Keep records of each member on file, their contact numbers and any special needs of the child that should be known to leaders/coaches and volunteers
Ensure that each member signs up to the code of conduct
Ensure that the rules and regulations include; complaints, disciplinary and appeals procedures, an anti-bullying policy, safety statement, rules in relation to travelling with children, supervision and recruitment of leaders
To ensure that Area/County adopt a policy of inclusion and integration that welcomes children of all abilities to participate in a fun and friendly atmosphere

DLP (Area Level Only)

The DLP is the person responsible for dealing with any concerns about the protection of children. The DLP is responsible for reporting allegations or suspicions of child abuse to the Mandated Person, TÚLSA Child and Family Agency in Republic of Ireland or Social Services in Northern Ireland and/or An Garda Siochána/PSNI. The Area’s child protection policy and procedures must include the name and contact details of the DLP.