County Safeguarding & Anti-Discrimination Officer in Chester-le-Street

Organisation: Durham Cricket C.I.C.

Location: Banks Homes Riverside, Chester le Street.

Contract type: Permanent (Part time).

Salary: £16,000pa

Introduction

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), cricket’s governing body, and Durham Cricket are committed to ensuring that all children who participate in cricket are made welcome and have a safe and positive experience. The safeguarding and support of children in cricket, whether they are playing, watching, or taking part in any other cricket-related activity, is of paramount importance.

Role Purpose

The Safeguarding and Anti-Discrimination Officer will lead safeguarding and anti-discrimination across the professional / first-class and events side of the club. They will act as the strategic lead and single point of contact (SPOC), managing proactive safeguarding and embedding best practice, managing cases, and ensuring compliance with ECB standards and statutory requirements. The postholder will play a visible role across the talent pathways, the professional squads, and major events, ensuring cricket is a safe, welcoming, and inclusive game for all.

Key Responsibilities

• Governance & Strategic Leadership
  • Develop, implement and deliver the safeguarding and anti-discrimination strategy for Durham Cricket, aligned to ECB standards and CPA requirements.
  • Champion and influence a safeguarding-first culture across all levels of Durham Cricket.
  • Report to Board Safeguarding Lead and Directors, providing assurance, risk assessments and regular updates including board reports.
  • Maintain effective relationships with appointed safeguarding board lead.
  • Deliver Board Safeguarding Training every three years, or when membership changes.
  • Design and implement Durham Cricket’s player voice and ‘listening to children’ strategies.
  • Develop effective policies and procedures in relation to safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults.
  • Lead on and coordinate all ECB and / or external safeguarding audits on behalf of Durham Cricket.
• Case Management
  • Act as the Single Point of Contact (SPOC) for all safeguarding and discrimination concerns for Durham Cricket.
  • Lead and manage safeguarding and discrimination cases, ensuring compliance with ECB procedures and statutory requirements.
  • Ensure there is a clear referral pathway for sharing, reporting and recording concerns in line with ECB policy and guidance.
  • Liaise with statutory agencies (Police, LADO, Social Services) and the Cricket Regulator on case management.
  • Manage the process of reporting and logging all low-level concerns (LLCs) using ECB systems.
  • Understand the ECB threshold guidance and escalate all threshold cases to the Cricket Regulator where required.
  • Identify trends and patterns emerging from case management to inform future training and education in Durham Cricket.
  • Produce data and reports to support the effective monitoring and governance of safeguarding and discrimination across Durham Cricket.
• Safeguarding – Academy / First-Class Cricket / Match days
  • Be visible and provide operational safeguarding support to the County Age Groups, Academy, EPP, and Women’s & Men’s senior squads.
  • Work closely with the Academy Directors to ensure safeguarding is embedded within all elite environments.
  • Deliver safeguarding training within the Talent Pathway programme.
  • Act as Event Safeguarding Officer (ESO) at professional fixtures and major matchdays and events where required.
• Anti-Discrimination
  • Lead implementation of the ECB Anti-Discrimination Code in Durham Cricket.
  • Investigate and resolve cases of discrimination impartially and confidentially.
  • Provide training and guidance on equality, diversity and inclusion.
• Training & Education
  • Deliver safeguarding and anti-discrimination onboarding and training across staff, volunteers, officials, and players.
  • Maintain a training matrix ensuring those who interact with children and vulnerable adults are appropriately trained and vetted.
  • Support HR people team to identify appropriate safeguarding training for staff.
• Compliance / Cricket Regulator Engagement
  • Ensure CPA minimum standards are complied with and strive for ‘leading organisation’ status within the County Partnership Agreement (CPA) standards.
  • Drive compliance within safer recruitment practices throughout Durham Cricket including DBS checks.
  • Establish, build and maintain a good working relationship with their County Safeguarding Advisor (CSA) and the anti-discrimination team.

Person Specification

Essential skills

• Professional experience of safeguarding gained through relevant experience of casework.
• Previous experience in a similar role, with a focus on discrimination prevention, diversity, and inclusion.
• Excellent presentation and training skills.
• Enthusiasm and commitment to safeguarding and anti-discrimination.
• Excellent IT skills including Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook and other IT platforms.
• Experience of building relationships with key stakeholders.
• Excellent interpersonal and relationship management skills.
• A person-centred approach with an understanding of the rights, needs and best interests of children, young people and adults.
• Experience of working to high levels of confidentiality.
• Understanding and experience within Mental Health.
• Ability to challenge poor practice and effect change.
• Analytical skills to identify and present key themes / trends emerging from case data.
• Access to a car and a full driving licence is essential.

Desirable skills

• Experience of multi-agency working.
• Experience of volunteering or working in cricket, other sports or a similar activity.
• Experience and training within Mental Health to support staff.

Mandatory training to be completed by Officer:

• ECB Induction to Safeguarding
• Safeguarding for Specialist Roles (SSR) + bolt on
• Safer Recruitment within Cricket
• Safeguarding Adults within Cricket
• Safeguarding in the Talent Pathway
• Prevent Training

Management

The post will be line-managed on a day-to-day basis by Durham Cricket’s Director of Cricket.

This position is offered on a part-time basis. However, for a suitably qualified and outstanding candidate, we are open to considering combining this role with a related Safeguarding role with Durham Cricket Foundation to create a full-time post.

Other Conditions

The post holder will be based at Banks Homes Riverside as part of Durham Cricket. Due to the nature of the work the post holder will carry out duties at times that are most effective to perform the tasks required. This will involve some out of hours work – evenings, weekends, Bank Holidays, as necessary. There will also be travel around the region to meet different organisations.

Equal Opportunities in Employment Policy Statement

It is the policy of Durham Cricket to treat all employees and job applicants fairly and equally regardless of age, disability, gender, reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.

Safer Recruitment Policy

Durham Cricket is committed to safeguarding and protecting the children and young people we work with. All posts are subject to a safer recruitment process, including the disclosure of criminal records and vetting checks.

Hours / Salary / Holidays / Pension

Hours: Part-time, 17.5 hours per week.

Salary: £16,000.

Holidays: 28 days per annum (pro rata) including the 8 statutory Bank Holidays in England & Wales.

Pension: Automatic Enrolment into the Royal London Group Personal Pension Plan. Matched employee contributions up to a maximum of 5% of basic salary.

Workplace: Durham Cricket, Banks Homes Riverside, Chester-le-Street, DH3 3QR.