What is a Confidential Trusted Person (VCP)?
An association naturally wants to be a safe association, where everyone enjoys doing his or her sport, whether it be kendo, iaido or jodo. Appointing a Confidential Contact Person may then sound negative: after all, together we do everything we can to prevent things such as ‘bullying’, conflicts and quarrels, discrimination and sexual harassment within the NKR.
Why a Confidential Trusted Person?
Practice within various sports associations has shown that there are times and events where, unfortunately, transgressive behavior could not be prevented. We would like to be ahead of this within associations. That is also one of the reasons why it is good that a Confidential Contact Person is present within associations. A central point of contact to ensure that the way we interact with each other within the club remains fun and safe.
You will find the ‘job profile Confidential Contact Person’ in the download at the bottom of this article.
Prevention is better than cure
The Confidential Contact Person is also there for questions that may arise before there are problems. You can go to a Confidential Contact Person with questions that you do not easily ask or that you are afraid will not be answered seriously. This applies to trainers, coaches, parents, supervisors and team members. In addition: reporting quickly, talking about it and ensuring that an undesirable situation is put to an end (early) ensures that it does not worsen and recurrence can also be prevented.
When can you contact the Confidential Trusted Person of the NKR?
If you have any questions about whether the way of dealing with each other within your dojo or team is correct, you are welcome to contact the confidential advisor.
The questions you have could be about:
Bullying and being bullied.
Feeling that you don’t belong because of your skin color, religion or sexual preference.
Cross-border behaviour: you experience the way you are approached and/or touched by a team member, trainer or coach as unpleasant.
A suspicion of transgressive behaviour: you think that someone close to you is involved in this.
You are concerned about the way your child is treated within the club/team.
You wonder whether your behavior as a trainer and/or coach is wise.
Someone has directly or indirectly accused you of unacceptable behaviour.
The fact whether your question is in the right place with the NKR confidential adviser.
How confidential is a Confidential Trusted Person?
It will be clear that it can be important to involve other people in a question or problem, but this will never happen without consultation and permission! No one will be informed of the conversations that take place between you and the Confidential Contact Person, without you: have given permission are aware of
The activities of the Confidential Contact Person are the responsibility of the General Board. At the end of the year, the Confidential Contact Person reports to this board whether there have been reports, the nature of these reports and how progress and closure have taken place.
What is the Confidential Trusted Person not for?
In principle, the Confidential Contact Person is there for incidents, suspicions of incidents and related questions that take place or have taken place between the association and members or where there is a relationship between activities within the dojo context and the person(s) involved. When in doubt: discuss with the Confidential Contact Person whether your question is in the right place with her/him. The Confidential Contact Person will not receive and/or guide people personally. If further care is necessary, this will always take place outside the association, always with the consent of the person(s) involved.
If there is a question of sexual harassment, you can also contact the NOC*NSF hotline with initial questions or doubts to tell your story. The NOC*NSF hotline can be reached day and night, including weekends and public holidays via 0900 – 202 55 90 (€ 0.10 per minute).
ConfidenceTrustedPerson course
NOC*NSF offers a Confidential Contact Person course. This course is intended for professionals and volunteers within unions and associations interested in the position of VCP. The association or union can register them for following the course. A VCP can also be appointed within the dojo. Participants in the training must be at least 25 years old and have a higher vocational education level. The course lasts two half days. During this course, attention is paid to the position that the VCP takes when there is a complaint. The advice and references that are possible are discussed. The course is not only theoretical, but also practical. Practical conversation techniques are practiced. All in all a versatile training in which the different sides of the work of the VCP are explained and practiced. The training is concluded with a certificate from NOC*NSF.
I am a Confidential Contact Person at a dojo
Are you a Confidential ContactPerson of a dojo? Then we have a number of useful tools for you. You can find them in the downloads at the bottom of this article:
– a registration form for the Confidential Contact Persons
– a report form for the Confidential Contact Person for a (possibly anonymous) report to the board or union
– a protocol Socially Safe Sports Environment regarding Sexual Harassment (containing step-by-step the procedure of the VCP in case he/she is informed in confidence of a Sexual Harassment incident)
– a step-by-step plan for reporting undesirable behaviour
– a tool for assessing a report of undesirable behaviour
Downloads: Code of conduct within NKR
Protocol socially safe sports environment
VCP report form
Function profile VCP