I don’t know about you, but prior to the pandemic I often struggled for an answer to the question ‘What do you want for Christmas?’
Of course in Covid times, it’s been a little easier to work out my yuletide wish - multiple negative lateral flow tests please.
But this year it turns out there was something else I needed, along with all the other members of our golf club.
SafeGolf.
And perhaps you too recently added SafeGolf to your Christmas list?
It’s possible, if you received an email, as I did this December, from England Golf (Home - England Golf) entitled ‘Your Handicap Index’.
I’d never knowingly communicated with England Golf before, so the title of the email caught me a little off guard. Why were they emailing me about my handicap index? Had something gone wrong with a recent entry on Howdidido? Maybe it was because I’d come down a couple of shots this year. Could it be that someone at England golf had noticed and was sending a congratulatory email?
No and no.
The communique was actually to alert me to the fact that England Golf had withdrawn our Club’s access to the World Handicap System (WHS), so far as club competition results were concerned.
Why?
Well, apparently our club was one of 0.01%*(see footnote) golf clubs who had failed to obtain SafeGolf status since this was set as an affiliation requirement by England Golf, from April 2021.
What is SafeGolf?
The focus of SafeGolf is predominantly to do with safeguarding rather than health and safety. Aiming to ensure that the clubs can deliver a sporting environment in which children and adults can thrive without being subject to inappropriate, bullying, harassing or (worst case) criminal behaviours.
When it boils down to it, it’s a simple enough process to get the Safegolf accreditation, the key element being the introduction of a new role for most clubs – the Club Welfare Officer (CWO).
And it turns out that the CWO role isn’t an onerous undertaking in terms of either the required training, or suggested list of responsibilities. Most clubs will either tag it on to the duties of their General Managers or Club Secretaries, others may seek volunteers.
Whatever a golf club’s reason for not yet having SafeGolf status, and despite the short-term impact on club competition not being linked to the WHS, I agree with England Golf’s decision to adopt punitive measures.
Impressively, England Golf hasn't just whacked clubs with a driving iron and left them to figure it all out themselves. It has partnered up with other organisations to ensure there is ample capacity and capability to provide the on-line training required of all CWOs. Take a bow the NSPCC (NSPCC | The UK children's charity | NSPCC) and UK Coaching (We're here for the COACH - UK Coaching) - both of whom were involved in running courses right up to, and immediately following Christmas.
I'd like to think that most Golf clubs have a pretty good track record in respect of being safe. I think it's probably the case that the majority of clubs pride themselves, indeed promote themselves, as safe environments for children. Rightly so. But let’s not be naïve to the fact that inappropriate, bullying, harassing and criminal behaviours have taken place in golf environments, just as they have in other sports.
So, actually, acquiring SafeGolf status is more important than the mere imperative of regaining access to the WHS platform.
It has provided golf clubs with an opportunity to assess their culture, inclusivity, and all-round golf environment, and to ensure that the game remains safe and accessible to all.
Christmas has come and gone, and our club hasn’t yet achieved SafeGolf status. But we have got a couple of volunteers for Club Welfare Officer and are well on our way to fulfilling the England Golf affiliation criteria.
So perhaps ensuring SafeGolf at our clubs could be a worthy New Year’s resolution for us all.
It’s a lot more realistic than me giving up cigars.
*…I’m no statistician but I’m not sure about the accuracy of this claim. England Golf’s own website states that they represent 1800 amateur golf clubs. My calculator seems convinced that 0.01% of 1800 = 0.18.
In other words, less than 20% of one golf club?
I’d hazard a guess that the number of 'non-accredited SafeGolf' clubs is nearer to 10% of all golf clubs (n180)…but, regardless of the actual percentage, it is vital that, whatever the number, every club has processes in place to ensure a safe environment for children and adults.
And of course I should add the disclaimer that I could just be mis interpreting the 0.01% stat. I offer, as evidence of my mathematical shortcomings, my inability to make sense of the WHS itself.
On the other hand it could just be proof of something that I've long suspected...the world of golf is calibrated by a numerical system all of it's own...