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Downshire Tennis Club – Missing Child Policy

Downshire Tennis Club is committed to a club environment in which all children participating in its activities are not at risk. 

If a child under the responsibility of the Club were to go missing, the following actions should be taken  

  1. Ensure the other young people in your care are looked after appropriately while you organise a search for the missing young person.
  2. Inform the young person’s parents if they are present at the event, or nominate an appropriate person to telephone them and advise them of the concern. Reassure them that you are doing all you can to locate their child.
  3. Divide up all the available responsible adults into areas to be searched. It is best to take a short time to organise the search properly so that all places are searched fully.
  4. Search the area in which the child has gone missing, including changing rooms, toilets, public and private areas and the organisation’s grounds.
  5. Request all those searching to report back to you or to a nominated adult at a specific location and time.
  6. This nominated person should also be making a note of the events, including a physical description of the young person including approximate height, build, eye colour, hair colour and style as well as the colour, brand and type of clothing he/she was wearing, and where he/she was last seen, as this will be required by the police. If the search is unsuccessful you should then report the concern to the PSNI.
  7. The PSNI may recommend further action to be taken before they get involved; you should follow any guidance they provide.
  8. If the PSNI decide to act upon the concern, follow their guidance in respect of further actions to take, if any.
  9. At any stage of the investigation, if the young person is located, ensure that you inform all adults involved including the parents, searchers and the PSNI if they are already involved. 
  10. Refer the concern as soon as possible to the Club Safeguarding Officer and the Tennis Ireland Child Safeguarding Team.

October 2020