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B-FREE, Team Up For Respect
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D2.3 · Submitted report · English

Coach’s first response

Six steps for responding when you see a concerning incident or an athlete asks for help.

B-FREE | Erasmus+ Sport | Project 101245037

Coach’s first response

Working draft for local review. Completing this tool does not submit a concern, adopt a policy or verify safety.

Practical tool · Working draft

Take it one step at a time

Source: Annex A6. Coach’s first response card

Based on the submitted D2.3 report (English). Adapt the guidance to the club and local safeguarding procedure before use. These tools have not been validated as a B-FREE intervention.

Use when you see a concerning incident or an athlete asks for help. This card supports the club's safeguarding procedure. It does not turn the coach into an investigator.

Step 1 of 6

1. Make the situation safe

Interrupt harmful behaviour calmly. Check whether urgent help is needed. Contact the locally verified emergency service when there is immediate danger; do not wait to finish this card.

2. Listen without pressure

Find an appropriate setting consistent with the club's safeguarding arrangements. Give the athlete time; ask only what is needed to understand their immediate concern and safety. Avoid leading questions or repeated retelling.

3. Explain the next step

Say that you take the concern seriously and will seek help from the responsible person. Explain the limits of confidentiality; do not promise secrecy or a particular outcome.

4. Record the essentials

Note when and where, what you observed, what the athlete said and what you did. Distinguish their account from your interpretation. Use the authorised record, not the team chat.

5. Hand over and confirm receipt

Contact the safeguarding lead or deputy promptly and confirm who has accepted responsibility. Use the verified alternative if they are implicated, unavailable or do not respond within the stated time; act sooner if safety requires. Do not confront the person reported or investigate the allegation yourself.

6. Keep the connection

Tell the athlete who will contact them next and when. Check that the planned support is in place for their next participation. Pass on any new concern, including retaliation.

Your working notes

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Practice wording: “Thank you for telling me. I am taking this seriously. What do you need to feel safe now? I will explain who needs to help and what happens next.” This is suggested wording, not a participant quotation.

Avoid: a public discussion, blaming questions, forced apologies, telling children to sort it out between themselves, or waiting for the next incident before passing on a safeguarding concern.

Follow the safeguarding procedure before contacting parents or carers, taking account of age and consent. Seek advice first if contact could increase risk.

Basis: HU, §§9.5 and 11.2.2; G1, G2 and G7. Club-specific routes must be completed before distributing this card.

Working draft for local review. Completing this tool does not submit a concern, adopt a policy or verify safety.

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.