The British Aikido Board - child protection for parents and carers

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Help and advice for parents and carers

New Update - 5th May 2011

Until such time as the ISA requirements are re-established by the government, please note that all BAB CRB checks should be renewed every 3 years. If you have any queries then please contact your Association CPO, or Sue Ward, Lead Safeguarding Officer by email -

As a parent you play a very important role in safeguarding your child from harm. The information you provide and the example you set can give them the knowledge and confidence needed to deal with threatening or abusive situations.

It is your right as a parent to be able to check how well a aikido club is run, for the sake of your child's safety and your peace of mind.

on this page you can find:

Club safety check with questions to ask when choosing a club for your child and danger signals within a club to watch out for

clear information defining child abuse and common signs of abuse

the importance of listening to your child and how to teach your child about personal safety

how you can help make aikido safe for all children and setting the right example

details on getting help if you are worried that a child is being abused or put at risk during aikido.

Image of Rising Stars

Club safety check

Questions to ask and things to look out for when choosing a Aikido club for your child

Here are the key points you should check out when choosing a aikido club for your child.

BAB Club Search
You may also find the BAB Club Location systems useful, look for clubs that include children's classes.

Google Club Search

Remember, a well-run club will welcome questions about their activities and policies. They will know they have a responsibility to give this kind of information to anyone who leaves a child in their care.

Recruitment of staff and volunteers. Have they all been selected through a proper recruitment process? This should include interviews, references and police checks for staff working for children.
BAB Clubs should follow the BAB recruitment policy (Appendix 23) Each Coach or Helper should be able to produce a current Criminal Records Bureau Enhanced Disclosure.
How well are staff and volunteers trained? In addition to sports skills, they should all have been trained in safeguarding young people and health and safety procedures.
All BAB coaches that instruct children should have at least BAB Coach Level 1 and Young Persons Qualifications. You may check you club coaches qualifications from the BAB Website here, Just select the name of your club coach.
Supervision of staff and volunteers. There should be someone in charge to supervise staff and volunteers at all times.
Health and safety. Make sure that there is a leader qualified in first aid and that there are: a first aid box, arrangements for drinks and guidelines about dealing with injuries; also that the premises satisfy fire regulations. Each club should also have a recent risk assessment form.
Is the coach qualified? Your child's coach should have a recognised qualification that includes child protection training.
All BAB coaches that instruct children should have at least BAB Coach Level 1 and Young Persons Qualifications. You may check you club coaches qualifications from the BAB Website here, Just select the name of your club coach.
If your child or you have any worries, who can you talk to? The clubs coaches and Club Welfare Officer should be prepared to listen and tell you what to do. They should have information about local or national services that can also offer advice and support if you are unhappy about the way you concern is dealt with. They should also have a completed version of the Useful Child Safeguarding Contact Details Sheet (Appendix 10)
Does the club have a written code of behaviour? There should be a written code of behaviour showing what is required of staff, volunteers and participants. Avoid organisations that permit bullying, shouting, racism, sexism or any other kind of oppressive behaviour. All BAB Affiliated associations and there clubs should have a code of behaviour. (Appendix 4)
Does the organisation have a child protection policy? All BAB Affiliated associations and there clubs should have a should have a child protection policy, with a clear procedure for dealing with concerns about possible abuse. Parents and carers should be able to view the policy on request. The BAB child protection policy that all BAB Affiliated associations and there clubs have signed up to can be found in the Down Load Section at the bottom of this page.
What boundaries exist concerning club relationships? The club should have clear guidelines about physical contact and social activities between staff, volunteers, participating children, and parents. Find out who is the club welfare officer you can speak to if you have concerns about boundaries not being observed.

Danger signals within a club

Be very wary of a club where staff or volunteers create a culture within the club where the following is common practice:

parents are discouraged from watching or becoming involved in training or other activities
rough play, sexual innuendo or humiliating punishments
individuals who take charge operate independently of the club or sport guidelines
coaches who show favouritism or personally reward particular children
encouragement of inappropriate physical contact
staff/volunteers inviting children to spend time alone with them outside of scheduled sports activities, or request this through parents
poor communication with parents and lack of parental involvement
children suddenly drop out or stop going for no apparent reason.

It is hoped that all BAB Affiliated associations and there clubs should not fall into these categories, If you have any problems please contact the Association Child Protection Officer or contact Sue Ward, the BAB Lead Child Protection Officer on 01271 327800 or 01271 343952 If Sue is not immediately available please leave a message and she will call you back.
You can also email -

Definition and Indicators of Child Abuse

Definition of Child Abuse

Abuse and neglect are forms of maltreatment of a child. A child may be abused or neglected by someone who:

• Inflicts harm,
• Fails to act to prevent harm.

A child may be abused by:

• A family member
• By a person within an institutional or community setting
• By a person known to them or more rarely by a stranger
• An adult or adults, or another child or children.

Image of Rising Stars' Sensei Helena ('H')

Types of Abuse

Physical abuse

Physical abuse may involve, for instance, hitting, shaking, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating, throwing (except in the controlled environment of an aikido class), or otherwise causing physical harm to a child. Physical harm may also be caused when a parent or carer fabricates the symptoms of, or deliberately induces, illness in a child.

Aikido is a sport whereby actions including physical contact do take place. For physical abuse to take place the action would be a deliberate act and not in keeping with the ethos of the martial art; for example, applying techniques against the joint – such as nikkyo or sankyo – with children under the age of 12. (see also APPENDIX 17)

Emotional abuse

Emotional abuse is the persistent emotional maltreatment of a child such as to cause severe and persistent adverse effects on the child’s emotional development.

• It may involve conveying to children that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or valued only insofar as they meet
the needs of another person.
• It may feature age or inappropriate expectations being imposed on children. These may include interactions that are
beyond the child’s developmental capability, as well as overprotection and limitation of exploration and learning, or
preventing the child participating in normal social interaction.
• It may involve seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another.
• It may involve serious bullying, causing children frequently to feel frightened or in danger, or the exploitation or
corruption of children. Some level of emotional abuse is involved in all types of maltreatment of a child, though
it may occur alone.

In Aikido this may be child on child, or adult on child, and could include requiring children to undertake actions appropriate to the sport but not appropriate within that child’s age group.

Sexual abuse

Sexual abuse involves forcing or enticing a child to take part in sexual activities, including prostitution, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening.

• The activities may involve physical contact, including penetrative (e.g. rape, buggery or oral sex) or non-penetrative acts.
• They may include non-contact activities, such as involving children in looking at, or in the production of, sexual
online images, watching sexual activities, or encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways.

Child sex abusers can come from any professional, racial or religious background, and can be male or female. They are not always adults - children can also behave in a sexually abusive way. Usually the abuser is a family member or someone known to the child, such as a family friend. Some individuals will target a sport that allows access to children specifically to commit acts of sexual abuse.

Abusers may act alone or as part of an organised group. After the abuse, they will put the child under great pressure not to tell anyone about it. They will go to great lengths to get close to children and win their trust. For example, by choosing employment that brings them into contact with children, or by pretending to be children in internet chat rooms run for children.

Neglect

Neglect is the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of the child’s health or development. Neglect may occur during pregnancy as a result of maternal substance abuse. Once a child is born, neglect may involve parent or carer failing to:

• Provide adequate food, clothing and shelter (including exclusion from home or abandonment).
• Protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger.
• Ensure adequate supervision (including the use of inadequate care-givers).
• Ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment.
• It may also include neglect of, or unresponsiveness to, a child’s basic emotional needs.

In Aikido, while responsible adults must provide a Duty of Care to children in the club (provide appropriate first aid and summoning help if a child is hurt) it may be that the Coach or another person in the club may have concerns about a child who attends in terms of parental care. This may be identified by a child’s clothing being inappropriate for the time of year or repeated late collection of children from the session.

Bullying

Bullying is repeated deliberate actions by one or more people that causes hurt to an individual or group and where it is difficult for the bullied person(s) to prevent of deal with the bullies actions. The damage inflicted by bullying can frequently be underestimated. It can cause considerable distress to children, to the extent that it affects their health and development or, at the extreme, causes them significant harm (including self-harm).

The Anti bullying charity "Kidscape" defines bullying as a child encountering bullying attacks that includes:

• Physical. Pushing, kicking, hitting, pinching and other forms of violence or threats.
• Verbal. Name-calling, sarcasm, spreading rumours, persistent teasing.
• Emotional. Excluding (sending to Coventry), tormenting, ridicule, humiliation.

Bullying can occur between:

• An adult and a child.
• A child and a child.
• A parent and own child.

None of the above are acceptable within aikido

The competitive nature of any sport can create an environment which provides opportunities for bullying. Examples of bullying in aikido could be:

• A parent who pushes too hard.
• A coach who adopts a win-at-all costs philosophy.
• A child aikidoka who intimidates inappropriately
• An older aikidoka who intimidates inappropriately
• An official who places unfair pressure on a person

The physical contact in Aikido, combined with the importance of discipline and respect for authority, can create the opportunity for bullying; for example, coaches who inflict pain or humiliation on child ukes or adult ukes while children are watching.

Harassment

Harassment is an act that is unwanted by the recipient. It may be the provision of items or unwanted actions from another person but by definition it is the unwanted nature of the action or item that distinguishes the nature of the act to be harassment. As an example, most clubs encourage students to change partners regularly during a class and discourage refusing practice with any one individual. This might be exploited so that a child felt unable to refuse to practice with someone who was using the practice to constantly criticise the child’s technique or to show the child that their technique was ineffective.

It is for any given individual to determine for themselves what is acceptable to them and what they regard as offensive.

Harassment can be deemed to be a criminal offence in some circumstances and can lead to the use of a restraining order or criminal prosecution. Harassment can take many forms, some examples being suggestive sexual remarks; racist insults or jokes; verbal abuse or foul language exclusion; unwelcome attention. The impact of harassment for the individual can be profound. Harassment can lead to the child feeling unhappy, demoralize, undervalued as a person. Harassment is an often a constant ongoing type of abuse where the individual causes extreme distress by the repeated action usual verbally.

Indicators of Abuse

Abuse is not always easy to identify. Children can be bruised/injured in everyday life by, for example, falling off bikes and playing with friends. In adolescence, children can be moody and unpredictable in their behaviour.

Children can react to external circumstances by a change in behaviour such as bereavement or parental divorce/separation. However some signs may alert you to a view that a child may be being abused. Some indicators of abuse are:

• The child discloses a concern and describes what may be an abusive act
• Another person raises concern about the wellbeing of a child.
• A change in the child’s behaviour to or relationship with the parent or carer
• Unexplained or concerning injuries such as burns, cuts, and bruises situated in area of the child’s body where not
   normally prone to injury through, for example, play activity.
• Physical injury where the explanation given is inconsistent.
• Unexplained changes in behaviour such as a child becoming withdrawn, quiet or aggressive/verbally violent.
• Inappropriate sexual awareness and/or behaving in a sexualised manner
• Eating disorder i.e. a child is overeating or showing a loss of appetite.
• Excessive weight loss or weight gain for no obvious reason.
• Physical appearance becomes unkempt.
• The child is withdrawn and isolates themselves from the group and seem unable to make friends
• The child is prevented from socialising with other children.
• The child displays a distrust of adults.
• Behavioural changes such as reduced concentration and/or becoming withdrawn, clingy, depressed, tearful,
   emotionally up and down, reluctance to go to school, training or sports club.
• A drop in performance at school or in the sport.
• Physical signs such as stomach-aches, headaches, difficulty in sleeping, bed-wetting, scratching and bruising,
   damaged clothes and bingeing for example on food, cigarettes or alcohol.
• A shortage of money or frequent loss of possessions.

This is not an exhaustive list of indicators and alone cannot be seen to be definitive proof a child is being abused.

Listening to your child

If your child talks to you about anything that is worrying them, always listen carefully and take them seriously. Try to build an open and trusting relationship so they know they can come to you with their concerns.

If your child tells you they have been abused, or describes what you think may be abuse, they may be feeling very anxious or embarrassed. It is important that you do not react in a way that adds to their distress.

Here are some points to remember:

try to react calmly
listen very carefully to what your child tells you
make clear that you believe what your child says
tell your child that they have done the right thing by telling you
tell them that they are not to blame
it is very important that you take action to end the abuse .

Teach your child about personal safety

Talk to your child about keeping safe. Encourage them to tell you straightaway if they feel uncomfortable or have worries
about an adult's behaviour, whether during sports activities or in any other situations.
Tell your child that he or she always has the right to say "No" if an adult is trying to persuade them to do something they
feel is wrong, or which makes them feel uncomfortable or frightened.
Be a good listener. Children often feel very anxious and embarrassed about speaking out about abuse or bullying. So
listen very carefully and take what your child says seriously. See Listening to your child.
Make sure your child understands about sex and about their body. Talking about this may feel a little difficult at first, but it
can play an important part in protecting your child from abuse. For example, your child needs to understand about the
private parts of the body in order to recognise what is acceptable touching by an adult and what is not.
Decide together on an "emergency plan" for your child to follow in situations when they may be at risk of harm. Make sure
he or she understands what they should do. If they are going to an "away" event, encourage them to spend their free
time there with a friend or another participant.
Make your child aware of other helpful contacts for children. See Help and advice for children and young people in aikido.

How you can help make aikido safe

Parents can play an important role in making sports safe and enjoyable for all children.

Here are some ways you can help:

encourage your child's club to develop safeguarding policies and guidelines
check to make sure that the guidelines are being put into practice
find out who the child protection/welfare officer is and support them in their work
get involved as a volunteer
go along to support your child's involvement in training or competitions
if you are actively involved in the club, make sure your behaviour sets the right example. See Setting the right example.

Setting the right example

If you are actively involved in your child's aikido club, remember that your behaviour can have either a positive or negative effect on the club's culture and atmosphere.

How you behave at the dojo or competition and what you say and do afterwards to your child will not only affect him or her. It also influences how other parents and children behave.

Your approval is very important to your child. What you say and do about their performance has a major effect on how they feel about themselves and their abilities. So give positive and constructive feedback about his or her efforts. You should not make negative, personalised comments or punish them in any way.

Don't have a "win at all cost" attitude, or encourage this in your child. Remember, learning to lose with a good grace is an important part of sportsmanship.

More positive behaviour:

find out the names of those who run the aikido club and introduce yourself to them
make sure you arrive on time before and after your child's activity
make sure you tell the club if your child isn't able to attend a planned activity or if you need to make changes in pick-up arrangements
help your child prepare by making sure they have all the necessary equipment, food and drinks
find out ways you can actively support the club's activities
if you have any concerns, talk about them to the appropriate member of staff/volunteer. If you are unhappy with the response you get from the club, contact the association child protection officer or Sue Ward, the BAB Lead Child Protection Officer on 01271 327800 or 01271 343952 If Sue is not immediately available please leave a message and she will call you back.
You can also email -
comply with any requests made by club officials, even if the request is being asked to leave.

Parents should accurately complete a parental consent form ensuring the club are aware of any health issues and have emergency contact details.

Getting help

If you are worried that your child is being abused or put at risk during aikido it is vital that you talk to someone about it.

The idea of speaking out about abuse or poor practice in a aikido club can be daunting. You will probably feel worried about the impact on you and/or your child. But if you have concerns you must take action. By doing so you will be safeguarding your child and also helping to prevent other children being harmed or put at risk.

Speak to the club child protection or welfare officer.
Speak to the association child protection officer or If you have any problems please contact Sue Ward, the BAB Lead Child Protection Officer on 01271 327800 or 01271 343952 If Sue is not immediately available please leave a message and she will call you back.
You can also email -
Find out the club guidelines for recording and reporting concerns and follow them.
If you think a child is in immediate danger of abuse, contact the police on 999, or your local social services department.
If you are a child, or have concerns about a child's safety, you can ring the NSPCC's 24 hour free phone helpline

Telephone:             0808 800 5000
Asian Helpline:      0808 096 7719
Welsh Helpline:    0808 100 2524
Textphone:             0800 056 0686 (for deaf users)
Website:                 www.nspcc.org.uk
or contact the Child Protection in Sport Unit (CPSU)
3 Gilmour Close, Beaumont Leys, Leicester LE4 1EZ

Telephone: 0116 235 7278
Website: www.thecpsu.org.uk

Useful websites

www.childline.org.uk - ChildLine is the UK's free and confidential, 24-hour helpline for children in distress or danger.

www.bullying.co.uk - Advice for children, parents and schools about dealing with bullying.

www.thinkuknow.co.uk - The latest information on the websites you like to visit, mobiles and new technology. Find out what's good, what's not and what you can do about it.

www.ceop.gov.uk - The Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre is part of UK police and is dedicated to protecting children from sexual abuse wherever they may be. You can report abuse through their site by using the button below. But if you know about a child or young person who is in immediate danger, immediate risk or you require an urgent response, you must call 999 or your local police.

Disclaimer:
The views, advice and information contained in these pages do not constitute any legal advice. The information supplied is believed to be wholly correct at the time of publication, but some content will have been gleaned by the BAB from various information sources.