Anti-Bullying Statement

The Committee and Officers of Sudbury Rowing Club are committed to providing a welcoming, inclusive, and safe environment for all of our members, both adults and children.

Bullying of any kind is not tolerated at our club. We take a proactive approach to prevent bullying of anyone from occurring and will respond to all concerns and disclosures of bullying, prioritising the well-being of all children and adults at risk. We believe that in most cases, addressed early on, bullying can be effectively stopped and everyone can continue to enjoy rowing.

We strongly encourage all members to report incidents of bullying to the Club Welfare Officer or a member of the Committee to enable us all to work together to address it.

Preventing bullying

Our club takes the following preventive measures:

Our club makes this Anti-Bullying Statement easily available to all members and visitors
Our introduction to new club members and visitors includes outlining our anti-bullying stance
We raise awareness of bullying in our club — this may be through anti-bullying posters; and/or celebrating Anti-Bullying week in November
All rowers and parents of junior rowers must adhere to and sign the Club’s Code of Conduct upon joining
A member who does not adhere to the Code of Conduct may be the subject of the club’s disciplinary process and ultimately have sanctions applied, such as suspension or withdrawal of membership
Our Club Welfare Officer is responsible for raising awareness of our anti-bullying statement and following our procedures (see ‘what to do if bullying occurs’)

Our Club Welfare Officer has a responsibility to:

clearly communicate that bullying is not tolerated in the club
be a contact point for children and adults to speak to about bullying concerns and disclosures
talk to the child or adult to ask them what is happening and what they can do to help
if bullying is taking place, to follow the club’s anti-bullying procedures
talk to the British Rowing Governance and Welfare Team if support is required

What to do if bullying occurs

Talk to our Club Welfare Officer (or a Club Committee member if the CWO is not available). We cannot promise to keep the bullying secret if we are concerned about someone’s safety and well-being, but we will do our best to handle all concerns and disclosures sensitively, working with you to find practical solutions that keep everyone safe and enjoying rowing

For under 18s:

Our Club Welfare Officer will meet with the young person being bullied and their parents to agree how to address the bullying. We will make written notes after the meeting to summarise what has been said and agreed; these will be seen and signed by those present at the meeting
If the young person chooses to handle the bullying themselves, ideas for doing so will be discussed with the parents and young person unless there are concerns that this puts them or someone else at risk of (further) harm
If the young person being bullied agrees, or there is a concern that others may be at risk of harm, those bullying, and their parents will be asked to meet with the Club Welfare Officer. As in (1), notes after the meeting will be taken
If both parties agree, a meeting between the young person bullying and young person being bullied, their parents and Club Welfare Officer, will be held to agree how to prevent further bullying and an agreement made and put in writing. This is likely to include informing the coach of decisions so that the coach can monitor the situation
Follow-up meetings will be scheduled (where feasible) to check in on everyone involved and ensure the bullying has ceased
If the bullying continues, our club may request the bully to leave the club, either temporarily or permanently
Where there is a concern that the young person bullying may be experiencing harm themselves, may be harming others outside of rowing, and/or the bullying is severe, our club will report the concerns to the British Rowing Governance and Welfare Team, who will work with us in line with the British Rowing Safeguarding and Protecting Children Policy

For over 18s where an adult has identified themselves as ‘at risk’:

Our Club Welfare Officer will meet with the adult being bullied (and their carer where there is one and the adult chooses for that person to be present) to agree how to address the bullying
Steps (2) to (6) above will be followed
Where there is a concern that either the bully is a person who may be at risk of harm themselves; or the bully may be (at risk of) harming others; or the bully is an adult at risk who agrees the issue can be reported so they can access support, our club will report the concerns to the British Rowing Governance and Welfare Team, who will work with us in line with the British Rowing Safeguarding and Protecting Adults at Risk Policy

It is important to remember that the person bullying may be experiencing, or have experienced bullying, other harm, and/or challenging personal situations themselves. Our club works with the person bullying and the person being bullied, with the aim of ending the bullying where both parties can learn from the incident, become advocates for preventing and responding to bullying and continue to enjoy rowing. However, in some instances we recognise that the bullying may not be resolved and/or someone may continue to be at risk of bullying. Our zero-tolerance approach to bullying means that our club may ask someone who is bullying to leave the club temporarily or permanently.

If the person bullying is a coach or other adult in a position of trust:

If the person bullying is the Club Welfare Officer, concerns should be reported to a Committee Member or directly to the British Rowing Governance and Welfare Team
The British Rowing Governance and Welfare Team must always be informed
Where applicable, the case will follow the British Rowing Disciplinary procedures
The case may be referred to the Case Management Group and/or the police
Where a coach or teacher is employed by an outside organisation, the British Rowing Governance and Welfare Team will also inform the person’s employer

Updated 2023.