Singapore, 23 November 2021 – The Safe Sport Commission today announced the launch of the Safe Sport Unified Code, to provide the sporting community with a clear reference on what constitutes inappropriate behaviour.
The Unified Code set out the community agreed standards of misconduct which threaten the core values of sport, including sexual, psychological, and physical misconduct, as well as other inappropriate acts such as grooming, wilful tolerance and abuse of processes related to reporting. These inappropriate behaviours transcend sport-specific cultures or codes and undermine both the mental and physical health of participants and the integrity of sport. They were developed in consultation with experts in safeguarding children and vulnerable groups from key governmental and non-governmental organisations[1], leaders in the Olympic and Paralympic movement, and the sporting community comprising athletes, organisational leaders, support and administrative members, among others. The entire consultation process spanned over nine months, involving over 200 participants across 68 organisations, with representatives in 58 sports.
“The launch of the Safe Sport Unified Code marks another milestone for us in creating a conducive and safe sporting environment for all. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the various stakeholders in the sporting community who have been involved in the extensive consultation process. This helped us gain a better understanding of what constitutes abuse and harassment, the concerns and issues faced by the sporting fraternity, and eventually derive at a set of community agreed standards of misconduct defined in the Unified Code. The Safe Sport Commission will continue to work closely with Sport Singapore and the rest of the sporting community to strengthen our framework, policies and processes to ensure a safe sporting ecosystem for all participants,” said Ms Chan Yen San, Chairperson of the Safe Sport Commission.
(For Ms Chan Yen San's full speech, watch video above)
Sport Singapore (SportSG) together with Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) and Singapore National Paralympic Council (SNPC, form the three key signatories to the Unified Code. As a leading sporting organisation in Singapore, SportSG believes that only when sporting environments are safe, can its values of care and respect, which will inspire and empower people to achieve their fullest potential, be realised.
The Safe Sport Unified Code forms the bedrock of the Safe Sport Programme, a harmonised safeguarding framework for effectively implementing the Unified Code across the sporting ecosystem. Under the Safe Sport Programme, member organisations will receive support through training of the organisation’s safeguarding officer, access to model policies (e.g. child safeguarding, travel, recruitment, digital communications), training and education resources for participants in their sport to help them understand their roles and responsibilities. They will also be able to tap onto the Safe Sport Support Network which comprises of qualified counsellors and trained befrienders, through a partnership with the Athletes’ Commission and Women in Sport Committee of SNOC, as well as Team Nila, to provide psychosocial support to individuals affected by incidents related to breaches of Safe Sport Unified Code. Should there be reports of misconduct within the sport organisation, the Safe Sport Commission will also manage and investigate the case under its jurisdiction.
National Sports Associations and National Sports Federations recognised and supported by SportSG, as well as members and affiliates of the SNOC and SNPC will be progressively onboarded to the Safe Sport Programme in 2022.
Whilst the national governing bodies for sport are the immediate priority, the framework was designed so that any sporting organisation may adopt the Unified Code into their organisational policies, contracts for services and employment terms. To access the full suite of member services under the Safe Sport Programme, other types of sporting organisations such as commercial sport programme providers may apply to be in a pilot programme in 2022. Outreach to the various organisations will be done in phases from 2022 to assimilate the larger sporting community with the Unified Code.
The Safe Sport Commission will be responsible for the administration of the Safe Sport Programme. The Commission comprises key stakeholder representatives such as athletes, coaches, members of the Olympic and Paralympic movement, relevant community groups and government agencies. More information on the Safe Sport Commission and its members can be found in Annex A. For more information on the Safe Sport Programme and the Safe Sport Unified Code, please refer to Annex B.
To access the full version of the Safe Sport Unified Code, visit www.safesport.sg.
(Watch the 9-month creation process of the Safe Sport Unified Code in the short video above)