Safeguarding in sport — protecting children, young people, and vulnerable adults from harm — is both a moral imperative and a legal requirement. Community sport organisations need funding to develop robust safeguarding cultures, implement policies, train staff and volunteers, and meet mandatory requirements. This guide covers the key funding sources.
Safeguarding funding for sport comes from:
- Sport funders: National bodies, state agencies, gaming trusts — safeguarding is increasingly a prerequisite
- Child protection funders: Department of Social Services (AU), Oranga Tamariki (NZ)
- Community funders: Organisations that fund community capacity building
Both national sport agencies include safeguarding as a governance and funding requirement:
- Sport Australia: SafeSport framework — clubs must meet safeguarding standards to receive investment
- Sport NZ: Safe and Welcoming Environments — safeguarding requirements for funded organisations
Organisations that meet these standards are better positioned for sport funding; organisations building toward standards may access capacity-building support.
Sport Australia SafeSport: The national framework for safe sport, child safety, and member protection:
- Online training resources
- Policy templates
- Reporting mechanisms
- Child safeguarding standards
Sport NZ Safe and Welcoming Environments: Guidance for safe sport organisations.
These frameworks include resources but often not direct grant funding — the funding comes through sport grants contingent on meeting standards.
Australia — DSS: Department of Social Services funds child protection capacity for community organisations.
Australia — State child protection agencies: Each state has child protection funding that can extend to community sport capacity.
New Zealand — Oranga Tamariki: Ministry for Children funds community organisations' child protection capacity.
Each national governing body has developed (or is developing) sport-specific safeguarding standards:
- Working with Children/Police Vetting compliance: National bodies require this of clubs
- Policy templates: NGBs provide safeguarding policy templates for clubs
- Training: Some NGBs fund or subsidise safeguarding training for clubs
Contact your sport's national body for safeguarding support and funding.
New Zealand and Australian gaming trusts fund community organisation capacity building, which can include:
- Safeguarding policy development costs
- Working with Children Check processing fees (Australia)
- Police Vetting costs (NZ)
- Safeguarding training for coaches and volunteers
Framing safeguarding costs as community sport capacity building for gaming trust applications.
Australia: Working with Children Checks are mandatory for adults who regularly work with children, including sport coaches. Fees vary by state. Some organisations cover check fees as a recruitment cost. Gaming trusts can fund this.
New Zealand: Police Vetting is required for adults working with children in sport. Processing fees are modest but can accumulate for large volunteer bases.
Australia: National Principles for Child Safe Organisations (developed by Australian Human Rights Commission) provide standards for all organisations working with children. Sport organisations working toward these standards can access capacity-building grants.
Some community foundations fund safeguarding capacity for small community organisations:
- Policy development costs
- Training delivery
- System implementation
Common funded safeguarding training:
- Child protection awareness: Recognising and responding to child abuse indicators
- Safe sport behaviour standards: Appropriate and inappropriate coach/athlete relationships
- Social media and online safety: Digital safeguarding for junior sport
- Mental health first aid: Supporting athletes' mental health
- Trauma-informed practice: Working sensitively with participants who have experienced trauma
Strong safeguarding applications demonstrate:
- Organisational need: Where are the gaps in current safeguarding practice?
- Clear outcomes: What specific safeguarding improvements will result?
- Leadership commitment: Board and management support for safeguarding investment
- Policy status: What policies exist, what's missing?
- Training reach: How many staff and volunteers will be trained?
- Ongoing compliance: How will safeguarding standards be maintained after the grant?
- Vulnerable participant focus: Populations at higher risk (disability, youth, cultural minorities)
Tahua's grants management platform helps sport organisations manage safeguarding capacity grants, track policy compliance and training completion, and demonstrate the safe sport outcomes that national bodies and funders require.