SFDA Safeguarding Framework and Safeguarding Officer

Why safeguarding matters to SFDA

Everyone who plays, coaches, volunteers or organises flying disc sports in Tamil Nadu has the right to do so without fear of harassment, abuse, exploitation or discrimination.

Safeguarding is one of the SFDA Board's top priorities for the next two years, alongside growing women's participation, and a standing item at Board meetings. Players will not stay where they do not feel safe.

India Ultimate already has a strong national framework and a Safeguarding Committee. What Tamil Nadu needs is someone close by whom players and clubs can approach, and who can make that framework work in practice.

The policies SFDA follows

SFDA adopts, in full, two India Ultimate policies: the India Ultimate Member Safeguarding Policy and the India Ultimate Child Safeguarding Policy. They define harassment, abuse and misconduct, the standards expected of everyone, how complaints are investigated and the sanctions that apply. SFDA follows them as India Ultimate revises them; where anything here is unclear, they apply.

Who this covers

Everyone in SFDA activities — players, coaches, captains, selectors, support staff, volunteers, officials and Board members — at all SFDA sessions, camps, tryouts, tournaments, state teams and travel, and in related online spaces. Clubs are encouraged to follow the same standards, and any player in the state can approach the officer.

What the Safeguarding Officer does

SFDA will appoint a single Safeguarding Officer rather than a committee, keeping the structure simple while the role is established. The term runs October 2026 to September 2028; the Board will then review the role and move to a committee if needed. The officer will:

• Be the first point of contact for safeguarding concerns in Tamil Nadu, with confidential advice on the options and support available
• Keep a formal, confidential record of every concern
• Handle non-severe concerns directly, and refer severe ones to the IU Safeguarding Committee
• Be SFDA's point of contact with that committee, and support people through the IU process
• Raise awareness across clubs, help clubs name their own contacts, and coordinate IU safeguarding training
• Put the right safeguards in place before any activity involving under-18s, share an anonymised annual report, and hand over all records at the end of the term

Independence from the Board

This is the heart of the framework. The officer is appointed by the Board but acts independently of it. People must be able to raise a concern knowing the Board cannot influence, access or overrule how it is handled.

• Not a Board role. The officer cannot sit on the SFDA Board, and takes no instructions from it on safeguarding.
• No involvement in cases. No Board member may direct or question how a concern is handled, or ask who raised it.
• Confidential records. Records are held by the officer alone; the Board has no access.
• No approval needed to refer. The officer refers matters to the IU Safeguarding Committee, or the police where required, without the Board's approval and without telling it first.
• Concerns about the Board. Any concern involving a Board member goes to the IU Safeguarding Committee, and the officer does not inform the Board.
• Only what the Board needs to act. If someone must be stood down while a concern is looked into, the officer says only what action is needed, not the details or who raised it.
• Anonymised reporting only. Updates to the Board cover how many concerns there were, of what type, and how they were handled — never names.
• Protected from removal. The Board cannot remove the officer over how they handled a case; removal requires serious misconduct or a breach of confidentiality, after consulting the IU committee.

If the officer ever feels the Board is trying to influence a safeguarding matter, they report it directly to the IU Safeguarding Committee. The same independence applies to safeguarding in the work of the SFDA Women's Committee.

How to raise a concern

Anyone can raise a concern, whether it happened to them or they witnessed it, in person or online. Raise it with the SFDA Safeguarding Officer, or with India Ultimate directly at safeguarding@indiaultimate.org or through the IU online reporting form, which also allows anonymous reports. You can always go to India Ultimate instead.

Nobody will face retaliation for raising a concern in good faith. Retaliation, including exclusion, isolation or intimidation, is itself treated as harassment under the IU policy.

How concerns are handled

• Non-severe concerns — boundary missteps, inappropriate comments, poor conduct at sessions — are handled by the officer under the IU policy's process and timelines.
• Severe concerns — repeated harassment, abuse of power, behaviour causing significant harm — go to the IU Safeguarding Committee.
• Anything that may be a criminal offence is referred immediately, with police or authorities involved as required by law.
• Any concern involving someone under 18 is referred under the IU Child Safeguarding Policy.
• Any concern about a Board member, or where the officer has a conflict of interest, goes to the IU committee.

Where it is unclear whether a concern is severe, the officer treats it as severe and refers it. Anyone who disagrees can ask the IU committee to review.

Conflicts of interest

The community is small, so the officer may also be a player or coach. That rules nobody out, but it must be managed openly: the officer declares any relationship that could affect how they handle a concern, and steps aside from it.

Who can apply

Any adult in the Tamil Nadu flying disc community who:

• Is not a member of the SFDA Board
• Is trusted and approachable within the community
• Can keep matters strictly confidential and act fairly
• Is willing to complete safeguarding training arranged with India Ultimate
• Does not have any safeguarding complaint against them

How the officer is selected

1. Apply through the form.
2. The Board holds a call with each applicant.
3. The Board selects and announces the officer on 30 September 2026.

Board members will declare any close relationship with an applicant and step back from that decision.