Child Protection and CRB in Refereeing

I wish I had a pound for every question I am asked concerning CRB checks and child protection!

I am totally supportive of educating and raising awareness when it comes to child protection. You might ask, “Why”? Well, I spent eleven years as a Police Officer working in child protection. I have to tell you, this involved some horrific crimes against young people, some of which involved adults in football. It happens in all walks of life, for the majority of the time behind closed doors, sometimes linked to football activities. Therefore, we have to ensure that all young people involved in this fantastic game of ours are safe to enjoy themselves playing football. Our referees are an integral, important part of this game as is to make sure that our referee workforce is protected.

So what are the answers to the questions that referees have been asking? Here are the key ones.

Q1. I never come into contact with children - I only ref in adult football?

I still referee on a Sunday morning and as an active referee I know that there are masses of U18s who play in open-age football. In fact one team in the league in which I officiate has a majority of players under 18. Children in the eyes of the law are U18. There are often children present at football matches who might run the line for you, watch their mum or dad playing or in fact are young officials. Remember some 60 per cent of our new referees are aged under 18. There are significant numbers of young people linked to the adult game. .

Q2. So why do I need to do this CRB and child protection thing?

As referees we have a number of responsibilities. We carry out pitch inspections, ensure players’ equipment is safe, manage risk in relation to matches and since we come into contact with U18s across football, we also need to ensure that everyone, including ourselves are protected too.

Raising awareness of child protection issues across football is a key objective for everyone. Government guidance in ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children’ states, 'All agencies and organisations whose staff and volunteers work closely with children should have policies and procedures in place to deter those who are unsuitable to work with children. This should have formal links in respect of the CRB and the Protection of Children Act List as well as rigorous recruitment processes.’ The FA’s legal advice highlighted that failure to carry out CRB checks would be a breach of the organisation’s duty of care.

To date the process of CRB checking has identified people in football who are banned from working with children, but until their CRB check arrived, they had been caring for and working with children in football. This has included people in roles as match officials.

Q3. I am a pillar of society - why can I not be exempt from CRB checks?

It is best practice to complete a CRB check. It is obvious from information in the media that child abuse has no boundaries. Operation Ore, the police investigation into child abuse on the Internet, identified offenders from all walks of life including social work, education and football.

A large number of the offenders I dealt with as a police officer were professionals in positions of power. Currently, 14 per cent of cases handled by The FA are concerned with referees - these include people who seemingly, to all around them, were pillars of society. Some of them have committed the most serious offences against children, which draw a custodial sentence. In my mind this more than justifies The FA’s decision that people under the jurisdiction of football, including referees, should complete a check.

Q4. I am concerned; I have an old conviction for assault on a 14 year-old boy from when I was a teenager. I am in my 40s now. Where do I stand?

Old offences, where there has not been any pattern of re-offending, are unlikely to prevent you from refereeing. Likewise a one-off conviction of drink driving committed some years ago will not affect our decision that you are suitable to referee. The FA makes sensible, fair and consistent recruitment decisions, based on a clear set of protocols. The processes, and people moving through it, are treated with the utmost confidentiality and The FA CRB Unit has been praised by the CRB nationally for its strict adherence to the code of practice. The whole idea of CRB is to ensure that people who have a history of conviction data, which indicates that they pose a risk to children, are prevented from having access to children in football.

If you have a concern about what may show on your own check and want to discuss the process, then please call the FA Child Protection and CRB enquiry line. Calls can be made anonymously, if required.

Q5. I have a check already. Why do I need to do another through The FA?

What happens when you request a bank loan? The lender will do a credit check to ensure you are able to pay the loan back. This happens no matter how many times you apply for a bank loan. CRB is no different. Previous checks become dated as soon as they are carried out, they are a snapshot in time.

Another serious consideration concerns the existence, in some cases, of additional information. If someone is currently under investigation by the police when a CRB check is requested, the disclosure certificate may be clear of conviction information. A copy of the clear certificate will be returned to both the individual and registered body (in our case The FA). However, as the individual is under investigation, the police will provide additional information giving details of the concerns to The FA and not to the individual. The additional information and ongoing collaboration with the police, then guides the recruitment decision. When someone has a check completed by another registered body, The FA does not have access to this additional information, therefore portability – or the concept of transferring checks from one body to another - is seriously flawed and leaves children at risk.

Our approach is the same as other sporting bodies carrying out CRB checks.

Q6. What happens at registration time?

At the point of registration you will receive from your County FA a new style registration form. It is prepopulated with your name and address and all you have to do is read each section and tick the appropriate boxes. Details of whether you have completed the child protection training or your CRB check will be recorded on The FA’s database. For those referees who have engaged in the process the renewal dates will be displayed in the child protection training and CRB section on the front of the form. If you have not completed either your training or your check, use this as a reminder; you still have an opportunity to do so.

Q7. A local league has asked me to show my certificate to re-register; I thought it was a confidential process?

Please note - at no point should you be asked to show your disclosure certificate. The information on your certificate is private to you and you do not need to show it. Indeed, it is unlawful for someone to ask to see your disclosure.

The FA will have made an informed decision on your application and therefore on your recruitment or retention as a referee. The recruitment decision whether you are accepted or not, will be recorded on The FA’s database. The club, league and county can refer to that decision, for the information they need regarding re-registration.

Q8. I live abroad most of the time, where do I stand?

It is a requirement that referees complete child protection training and a CRB check. In order to complete the training, referees abroad can either do the workshop if it is accessible to them, or the guide. With respect to the CRB check, this can only be enabled if you have a UK-based contact address. Referees living abroad will be managed on a case-by-case basis. If this applies to you, please get in touch so that we can agree a way forward.

Q9. So what about the abuse referees are subjected to?

Abusive behaviour of any nature is not acceptable in football. Likewise it is not acceptable to be intimidated by players and spectators.

Can you imagine how a young person feels who is subjected to a torrent of abuse during a game, or being bullied and abused in some way? It is important, then, that we ensure all adults involved in positions of responsibility in football, know what to do if they have a concern about a child's welfare. This includes supporting young officials, as well as knowing the best practice guidelines to protect ourselves when working with youngsters to avoid situations that could be misinterpreted.

Child protection is part of the process of addressing the unacceptable behaviour across the game.

Q10. You will be stuck when you have not got enough refs at the end of this process, as people do not want to do it!

It is encouraging that an excess of 20,000 officials have completed their child protection training and CRB checks.

As a child protection tutor I have delivered many workshops, which have been attended by a wide range of people involved in refereeing, including some sceptics. By the end of the workshop many have said, “I have learnt so much”; “this has really opened my eyes”. The Independent Football Commission has publicly applauded The FA child protection education programme, which is nearing 150,000 people across football.

Participation in child protection training and CRB checking is a relatively straightforward exercise and a small price to pay in order to ensure the protection of children involved in this great game of ours.

Essentially the more aware people there are across football, then the more eyes and ears there are creating a safer environment for everyone involved in football, especially children, who are the most vulnerable.

We need every referee to support our quest to ensure all referees have completed their training and CRB checks. If you need further help or guidance please contact your County Football Association or the Referees’ Department at the TheFA.com.

Thank you so much for your assistance in protecting children and yourselves in football.

If you need further help or guidance please contact your local County FA or any of the below mentioned:

The Referees’ Department at 020 7745 4651

The Media Group at 0800 085 0506