5.9 Case investigation
An investigation is the process by which someone obtains factual information to establish if, how, and why something has happened. The investigation begins the moment a Safeguarding Lead receives a report and takes any steps to find out further details.
Whether or not a report is investigated by external authorities, your organisation has a responsibility to act. Depending on the seriousness of the concern, the experience of relevant staff, and the resources available, the investigator could be the Safeguarding Lead, or an external expert may be recruited for this task.
Some cases will only be investigated by the sports organisation. Examples include when the concern is not serious enough for an external investigation, or when an external referral is passed back to the sports organisation to investigate and manage risk.
An investigation is likely to be a source of anxiety for all the parties involved. It is therefore important that the investigator adopts a person-centred approach by adopting five investigation principles.
Activity: Exploring the five investigation principles
Read each of the descriptions for the five investigation principles. Use the drop-down menu next to each description to match it to the correct principle heading for that description.
Next, you consider the investigation process in more detail.
5.8 What are the stages of managing a serious safeguarding case?
