Duties of care and welfare practices.

Abstract

Recent media reports and anecdotal evidence from across a range of sports has led to questions about whether welfare and safety really are being given the priority they deserve in elite sport. At a time of success for British sport in terms of medals, championships, and profile, this raises challenging questions about whether the current balance between welfare and winning is right and what we are prepared to accept as a nation (Grey-Thompson, 2017, p. 4). This chapter aims to introduce the term duty of care and consider its scope within sport. It will introduce mental health and abuse in sport as two risk factors which can threaten athlete well-being in performance environments, and finally introduce safeguarding as a step toward promoting a duty of care for all in sport. Practical recommendations are made in order to support people and organizations working toward achieving a duty of care for all.