Protecting Sport Together: Strengthening Europe’s Safeguarding Response

The primary objective of the project is to boost the capacity of the European sports movement to respond to safeguarding concerns and violations by classifying safeguarding concerns and identifying the gaps in safeguarding response within and across Europe. Thus, informing the creation of National Strategies, a European Response framework, and a European Network for Safe Sports (ENSS).

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: SAFE HARBOUR

Accordingly, the specific objectives of the project are:

·       To manage all project activities and consortium interactions to guarantee a constructive and high-quality implementation of the project activities.

·       To monitor and evaluate all project activities to ensure they are implemented in the most time/cost-effective manner and aligned with the scope of the project.

·       To identify the gaps in terms of safeguarding response and services in National Olympic Committees (NOC) and International Federations (IF) countries.

·       To classify safeguarding concerns and map stakeholders’ layers of responsibilities when responding to safeguarding concerns in NOCs and IFs countries.

·       To set European principles to apply when responding to safeguarding matters in a European Response framework.

·       To establish an ENSS (platform) to inform sports organisations and personnel on recourse/remedy in cases of safeguarding concerns in Europe.

·       To create and implement tailored strategies for national stakeholders to respond to safeguarding concerns.

·       To implement training sessions on the strategies among the NOCs leaderships and National Federations (NF).

·       To communicate and disseminate the project achievements and deliverables among relevant European and national stakeholders.

·       To embrace approaches to guarantee the sustainability and impact of the project beyond the consortium and project’s timeframe.

TARGET GROUPS

The project targets IFs and European NOCs partners in the project, and their staff, as well as sport stakeholders and sport’s governing bodies operating in Europe and beyond, as well as the civil society and European Community at large.

•               IFs and its personnel

•               European NOCs and its personnel

•               Sports Stakeholders (national, regional sports organisations, athletes…)

•               Other sports stakeholders and beyond (i.e. society at large, countries involved).

•               European Community (academics, experts, policymakers, and EU at large).

KEY MESSAGES

- Aligned with the project objective and its target groups, the key messages include:

- The European Olympic movement
- understands safeguarding as a collective responsibility of the sports movement which requires a shared and unanimous response.
- echoes the commitment of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to strengthening safeguarding principles across Europe.
- is following the EU’s priorities, including those to promote a “safe environment in sports”.
- acknowledges the topicality of the project in enhancing the capacity of the IFs and European NOCs to effectively respond to safeguarding concerns and violations, and to disseminate the culture of safeguarding in their respective areas of competence (i.e. “agents of change or “role models”).
- acknowledges the urgency to identify and address gaps in safeguarding responses and services, map relevant stakeholders and their responsibilities, and comprehensively classify safeguarding breaches across Europe
- acknowledges the relevance of designing and implementing a robust European Response framework and complementary National Strategies to ensure a proactive and informed approach to safeguarding concerns and violations within and across Europe.
- acknowledges the need to design and implement ad-hoc training and National Multiplier Events to foster awareness, skills, and engagement among relevant stakeholders.
- acknowledges the topicality of establishing a ENSS to provide comprehensive support and information on safeguarding issues and lay the foundation for the IOC Regional Hub.
- acknowledges.

RELEVANCE

The communication and dissemination of the project are important because will:

- enable stakeholders’ engagement
- show the impact of the project and its results on society
- expand the consortium’s network for future collaborations
- reinforces the dissemination of the project’s results
- raise civil society’s awareness of how the EU budget is spent
- showcase the success of European Programmes such as Erasmus+

PARTNERS