Safeguarding & FA rules

Guidance, not legal advice. This page summarises official FA safeguarding rules and guidance as checked on 1 November 2026. FA documents are updated regularly, so always follow the latest version at the linked source. We Are Matchday is not affiliated with or endorsed by The FA.

Our commitment

Every child, young person and adult at risk has the right to enjoy football safely. We Are Matchday follows The FA's Grassroots Football Safeguarding Children Policy and Procedures and builds its sessions, programmes and platform features around FA rules.

Source: FA Safeguarding Children Policy · England Football safeguarding

Reporting a concern

• A child is in immediate danger: call the Police on 999.
• Worried about a child: NSPCC Helpline 0808 800 5000 (nspcc.org.uk), or contact your local council's Children's Social Care.
• Young people: Childline 0800 1111 (free, confidential, childline.org.uk).
• Online sexual abuse or grooming: report to CEOP at ceop.police.uk.
• In football: tell your club or league Welfare Officer or County FA Designated Safeguarding Officer, or email The FA at Safeguarding@TheFA.com.
• Concerns about our platform, content or a user: contact our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL): [DSL NAME], [DSL ROLE], [SAFEGUARDING EMAIL], [SAFEGUARDING PHONE]. Deputy DSL: [DEPUTY DSL NAME], [DEPUTY EMAIL]. We aim to acknowledge reports within [RESPONSE TIME, e.g. 1 working day]. General contact: wearematchday@outlook.com.

If you think a child is at risk right now, don't wait for us to reply. Call 999.

Source: FA: how to report concerns · FA: NSPCC helpline

Adults at risk

The FA defines an adult at risk as someone aged 18 or over with care and support needs who may be unable to protect themselves from abuse or neglect. Report to your club or league designated safeguarding person and The FA (Safeguarding@TheFA.com); call emergency services if someone is in immediate danger. FA Safeguarding Adults training is available for anyone working with adult players, including our open-age and veterans users.

Source: FA Section 10: Safeguarding Adults · FA Safeguarding Adults policy

DBS checks and safer recruitment

• Anyone aged 16+ in a potentially unsupervised role with under-18s must hold an FA Enhanced DBS check with Children's Barred List check, accepted by The FA before working unsupervised, and renewed within three years.
• Roles include coaches, managers and assistants, Welfare Officers, referees in U18 football, first-aiders and medics, chaperones, regular club drivers and host families. Open-age teams with 16/17-year-olds are included.
• Checks are not needed to watch your own child, occasionally run the line, share lifts privately with other parents, or play alongside 16/17-year-olds. The FA notes that asking ineligible people for a check breaks the law.
• Clubs should follow The FA's eight-step safer recruitment guidance (Guidance 3.1).

Source: FA Section 3: Safer recruitment and DBS · FA DBS FAQs (County FA)

Welfare Officers and training

• Every club running an under-18 team must have a Club Welfare Officer (leagues have League Welfare Officers).
• The two-hour Welfare Officers Course (which replaced the Welfare Officer Workshop) is mandatory for club and league Welfare Officers and needs an in-date Safeguarding Children qualification and FA DBS check.
• FA courses include Safeguarding For All (free, 14+), the Safeguarding Children Course (core qualification for anyone working with under-18s), Safeguarding for Committee Members, Safeguarding Adults and the Player Welfare Course.
• Example County FA requirement (Hertfordshire FA 2025-26): a youth team lead coach needs Introduction to Coaching Football, FA DBS, in-date Safeguarding Children and Introduction to First Aid in Football; regular assistants need EE Playmaker, FA DBS and Safeguarding Children. Requirements can vary by County FA.
• Please check: FA pages differ on renewal. The FA training page describes a two-year certificate, while an FA help article recommends renewing safeguarding education every three years. Confirm with your County FA.

Source: FA: Appointing a Club Welfare Officer · England Football Learning: Welfare Officers Course · FA Section 4: Safeguarding training · FA help: re-certification · Hertfordshire FA requirements 2025-26

Respect codes of conduct

The FA's Respect programme sets codes of conduct for young players, coaches, team managers and club officials, and spectators, parents and carers. Coaches are expected to put player wellbeing, safety and enjoyment above winning; parents and spectators should encourage players and respect officials and coaches. Please read the full codes at the source.

Source: FA Rules: Respect

Ratios and supervision

• At least two adults with FA DBS checks.
• Recommended minimum ratios: 1 adult to 6 children aged 4–8; 1:8 aged 9–12; 1:10 aged 13–18.
• More adults for younger players, higher-risk activities or players with additional needs.

Source: FA: Ratios of adults to children

Changing rooms and showers

• Adults must not change or shower at the same time as children.
• Separate facilities for boys and girls in mixed activities.
• No photography or filming in changing areas.

Source: FA: Changing rooms and showers

Transport, away trips and tournaments

• Plan travel and transport in advance and get written parental or carer permission.
• Take a Welfare Officer and first-aider, and keep a club contact at home who is not travelling.
• Check accommodation, emergency procedures and incident reporting before you go.

Source: FA: Travel, trips and tournaments

Photography and filming

• Written parental consent before publishing a child's photo or video (website, social media, press).
• Do not publish names with images without consent; avoid online player profiles with pictures and detailed personal information.
• Protect children subject to care proceedings or legal restrictions.
• No photography in toilets, changing or first-aid areas; no unsupervised or one-to-one photo sessions.
• Take care with tagging on social media.

Source: FA: Photographing and filming children

Digital contact with under-18s

• Keep communications for football purposes, clear and in groups; copy in a parent or carer or the Welfare Officer.
• No private one-to-one messaging between adults and under-18s.
• Signed parental consent before email, social media or phone contact with 16/17-year-olds who hold a position of responsibility.
• Online sessions with under-18s must be observable and interruptible, and parents or carers accept participation.
• Report any inappropriate communication to the Welfare Officer straight away. Young people can also use CEOP and Childline.

Source: FA: Digital communications with U18s · FA Section 6: Digital world

How our platform follows these rules

• Signing in only keeps each person's details separate on a shared device; there are no parent-managed accounts yet. Player details are saved only in the browser on your device and are not sent to us or a coach. For under-13s, nothing is saved until a parent or guardian completes a consent step, and health metrics are off by default for under-16s. You can delete everything with "Delete all my data".
• No private messaging between adults and under-18 players; there is no messaging on the platform today. Any future team messages will be group-only with parents copied.
• No images of children are published without written parental consent.
• Session plans apply FA formats and heading limits for each age band.
• How we handle personal data, including children's data, is set out in our privacy policy. We have not found FA-specific data protection guidance for coaching websites, so we follow UK GDPR and ICO guidance.

Heading guidance by age

Please note: FA pages differ on U12 frequency. The current England Football page says one session a week; the older 2023-24 FA chart said one session a month. Check the latest FA guidance before planning U12 heading practice.

Source: England Football: heading guidance · FA heading chart 2023-24

Concussion: If in doubt, sit them out

• Anyone with a suspected concussion is removed immediately and does not return that day.
• Seek medical assessment (NHS 111) within 24 hours, then follow the graduated return to play.
• On the standard grassroots pathway the earliest return to match play is day 21. Under-19s need longer symptom-free periods and cannot use any accelerated pathway.

Source: England Football: concussion · FA concussion guidelines

Youth formats 2026-27

• U7: everyone plays, no substitutes. U8 and above: rolling substitutes. Equal playing time (at least 50%) is FA best practice.
• No league tables U7–U11; U8–U11 may enter up to three trophy events a season.
• Leagues may set shorter games within these maximums.

Source: FA Future Fit formats 2026-27 (Kent FA) · Future Fit: pitch and goal sizes · England Football: U7 guide

Review

We review this page at least annually and whenever The FA updates its guidance. Last checked against FA sources: 1 November 2026.