This weekend sees all levels of English football – including the Premier League - team up to promote the Play Safe campaign which spotlights the importance of safeguarding and creating an ever-safer culture across the game.
All 20 Premier League club captains will take to the field wearing Play Safe armbands and managers will wear Play Safe badges, helping to share the message that everyone has a role to play in ensuring young people and vulnerable groups have access to enjoy football in a safe environment.
This year’s Play Safe campaign focuses on the safeguarding role that everyone can play – coaches, players, parents/carers, spectators or volunteers – to keep children and young people safe, no matter what the football setting.
Led by The Football Association, the Play Safe campaign is endorsed by the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) and will also be supported by the EFL, Barclays Women’s Super League, Barclays Women’s Championship, National League and across the grassroots game.
The FA are once again encouraging parents and carers to undertake their free online Safeguarding Awareness Course to help raise awareness around safeguarding and how to report any concerns. The free course provides valuable information that guides parents and carers through questions they should ask to ensure the club or venue where children play football has the correct safeguarding policies, people and practices in place.
The FA’s Survivor Support and Safeguarding Advisory Group has added its support to the campaign: “It’s essential that everyone in football – no matter if they’re actively involved, or on the sidelines – understands that they have an ongoing safeguarding role to play. Obviously Play Safe is 24/7 and 365, as is reflected in the Play Safe messaging of ‘everyone, everywhere and every time’, but this weekend helps with raising awareness of how everyone can help to create safe and positive football spaces, what inappropriate behaviours look, sound, and feel like and importantly how to report concerns.”
