SafeParaSportAllies - Safe Para-Sport Allies: preventing harassment and abuse in sport for people with a disability

Research showed that sport participants with disabilities have difficulties to find access to sport, and that they, when in sport, experience more harassment and abuse compared to athletes without a disability. This clearly demonstrates the need for creating safe sport environment for people with a disability. Being the main point of contact for their athletes, para-sport coaches play a crucial role in the prevention of harassment and abuse. This project aims to adapt the existing Safe Sport Allies intervention to the specific context of para-sport coaches working with sport participants with an intellectual disability (ID) or cerebral palsy (CP). Available prevention materials do not sufficiently take into account their specific needs and context. Our objectives are to: (1) Interview para-sport coaches on their needs with regard to safeguarding; (2) Raise knowledge and awareness on harassment and abuse in para-sport; (3) Support para-sport coaches to identify signs of harassment and abuse; and (4) Stimulate positive coach-bystander behaviour. In order to achieve these objectives, this small cooperation partnership is undertaken by a consortium of three partners: (1) Parantee-Psylos, organizer of sport for people with a disability in Flanders (BE) and newcomer in the Erasmus+ programme, (2) Thomas More University of Applied Sciences (BE), researchers in safeguarding in sport and currently leading the Safe Sport Allies project, and (3) the LFB, interest group of and for people with ID (NL). The expected result is a coach-bystander intervention for para-sport coaches. It aims to positively stimulate their knowledge, attitudes, self-efficacy, beliefs regarding safeguarding. Moreover, it will help para-sport coaches to identify signs of harassment and abuse, and stimulate positive bystanding behaviour. The project will deliver the Intervention Handbook, as well as a teaser video and fact sheet with tips and tricks for para-sport coaches.