For the purpose of this policy a volunteer is any adult or young person who volunteers to
serve the club , this includes (but on exclusively) all officers, coaches, coordinators, first aiders, safeguarding assistants.

Regulated Activity with Children
Volunteers seeking to take part in regulated activities with children are required to obtain
and then maintain as current (less than three years old) a DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check through the RFU. Regulated Activity is defined as: teaching, training, instruction, care or supervision of Children, carried out by the same person frequently (once a week or more often), or on four or more days in a 30 day period, or overnight.

eDBS Checks
Appointments that require an eDBS will not be confirmed until this is in place and volunteers
must only work with children in the interim under direct supervision. The request for a DBS
check should be completed by the club and the volunteer within a maximum of four
weeks of applying to the club for appointment as a volunteer.

If the DBS has not appeared as current within twelve weeks of application on the GMS system, the situation will be reviewed by the Club Safeguarding Officer and/or Safeguarding Assistants and the volunteer may be restricted from working with children until the DBS check is resolved.

If the disclosure reveals any information that is of concern, the volunteer will be requested to send their certificate to the RFU to be assessed. This must be done in a timely fashion and the volunteer may be restricted from working with children until the DBS check is resolved.
The RFU will also handle any appeal and any recruitment decision they make is binding on the Club.

Recruitment Decisions
While the recruitment of volunteers is often initiated within Age Groups, recruitment
decisions about first appointment as a volunteer and the approval of appointments
is a Club function exercised by the Executive Committee or officers to whom that committee may delegate its powers.

Existing volunteers taking on a new post need approval but do not need to complete the full recruitment process. If a volunteer switches from an unregulated to a regulated role an eDBS check will be required before the new appointment is confirmed. Potential volunteers can apply directly to the Club without going through an Age Group.

All new volunteers must:
Please fill in the following form. We can then guide you through the process and make sure you get an eDBS check if needed.
IRUFC New Volunteer Form
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfjmCTWgEH4cLkyMpygYvsAfcVLHivaQbCzFC6U_riG49AvPA/viewform

Once you have completed the above form
1. Join the England Rugby Game Management System (GMS) by signing up using this link https://gms.rfu.com/GMS/Ilkeston

2. Once logged into GMS you will need to complete the online Introduction to Safeguarding course:
On your dashboard front page - scroll down and choose Find a Course
Choose "eLearning: Introduction to Safeguarding" and book this course - it is free
An email will be sent with a link to carry out the course
Once completed this will appear against your record, this make take a few hours
Once this is complete we can carry out an eDBS check

3. Provide required documents for enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check (the eDBS process requires us to physically see the original documents)
These need to confirm your full name, date of birth and current address. The most common types of ID submitted are passports + driving licences + either a recent bank statement, utility bill or council tax statement.
Contact Andy Evans 07770 303167 or Rich Hunter 07791 733696 to start your eDBS check

4. If applying for a coach or first aider position you will also have to complete the "eLearning: Headcase Concussion Awareness Training" which is also available through your GMS dashboard.
The appointment of coaches must be approved by the either the Club Safeguarding Officer or a club Safeguarding Assistant and Chairman of Minis or Chairman of Juniors, or Club Chairman or Director of Rugby

For further guidance and advice contact a member of Ilkeston Rugby Club’s Safeguarding Team
Safeguarding Officer: Rich Hunter 07791 733696 or richhunter2343@gmail.com
Safeguarding Assistant: Andy Evans 07770 303167 or chairman@ilkestonrugby.com
Policy reviewed 2024