If you think a child is in immediate danger or requires medical attention, you should call the emergency services on 999. You can also ring the NSPCC helpline on 0808 800 5000 to report immediate risks.
It's important to remember that the welfare of the child is paramount. However, it's not up to you to decide whether or not a child has been abused, but to report concerns appropriately.
Support is available should you need it, through your national governing body (if you have one), statutory social care services and the NSPCC as well as directly from the Child Protection in Sport Unit.
If there's no immediate danger to the child and they're not injured, you should report the concern:
- If you're affiliated to a national governing body, refer to their safeguarding procedures about who to report the concerns to. If this isn’t available, report it via their complaints procedure or ring their main contact number.
- If your club or activity isn’t affiliated to a governing body, you can seek support from your Active Partnership or your local children’s social care (social services).
- If there's no one else available to help, contact the local police.
Ensure you keep a record of your concern and how you reported it.
You can find the main contact number for all of the national governing bodies and sporting activities we recognise in the document below.
