Mike Hartill is a Reader in the Sociology of Sport at Edge Hill University. He has conducted research into child sexual exploitation in sport for the past fifteen years, working on a number of national and international projects aimed at preventing abuse of children in sport. He has delivered undergraduate programmes on child welfare in sport since 2002. In 2016 he authored a research monograph 'Sexual abuse in youth sport: a sociocultural analysis' (Routledge, 2016) and his current research (VOICE) is a collaboration between eight European countries focused on the experiences of victims of sexual abuse in sport and funded by the EU Erasmus+ programme. He is also providing expertise on child protection in sport for the Football Association's independent review into allegations of child sexual abuse in football. Phone: 01695 584763/4212 Address: Department of Sport & Physical Activity, Edge Hill University, Ormskirk, Lancashire, CW9 6HT.
Cases of sport-related child sexual abuse have received increasing news coverage in recent years.... more Cases of sport-related child sexual abuse have received increasing news coverage in recent years. This book documents and evaluates this important issue through a critical investigation of the research and theory on sexual violence and child sex offending that has emerged over the past thirty years.
Based on life-history interviews with male and female ‘survivors’ of child sexual abuse in sport, this text offers a deeper appreciation for the experiences of those who are sexually victimized within sports and school-sport settings. Drawing on a wide range of sources, it also provides a new theoretical framework through which child sexual abuse in sport may be explored. Offering a critique spanning psychology, sociology and criminology, this book challenges existing theories of sex offending while advocating an alternative epistemology to help better understand and address this social problem.
"The safeguarding of children and young people participating in sport has become an increasingly ... more "The safeguarding of children and young people participating in sport has become an increasingly prominent concern in policy-making and research communities around the world. Major organisations such as the IOC and UNICEF now officially recognize that children in sport can be at risk of exploitation and abuse, and this concern has led to the emergence of new initiatives and policies aimed at protecting vulnerable young people and athletes. This book is the first to comprehensively review contemporary developments in child protection and safeguarding in sport on a global level.
The book is divided into two parts. Part One critically analyses current child protection and safeguarding policy and practice in sport across a range of countries, including the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, China and Germany, providing a global context for current policy and practice. This represents the most comprehensive review to date of the landscape of child protection and safeguarding in sport and provides a starting point for critical international comparisons. Part Two explores a range of issues related to child protection and safeguarding in sport, including many not covered in previous books, such as emotional abuse, injury and over-training. While in many instances the impetus for policy in this area has arisen from concerns about sexual abuse, the second part of this book therefore opens up a broader, more holistic approach to child and athlete welfare.
By bringing together many of the leading researchers working in child and athlete protection in sport from around the world, this book is important reading for all advanced students, researchers, policy-makers or practitioners working in youth sport, physical education, sports coaching, coach education or child protection."
State-funded national governing bodies of sports in the UK now have a mandate to produce, dissemi... more State-funded national governing bodies of sports in the UK now have a mandate to produce, disseminate and embed child protection policies. This warrants an analysis of the impact of such policies, particularly in the context of reaching their target audience and having some early influence on the practice of sports clubs’ members in their dealings with children. The authors are undertaking a large research project, which aims to fully evaluate the UK Rugby League’s child protection policy. This paper reports findings from an evaluation of the initial implementation of the policy and explores its presentation, delivery and impact within UK rugby league clubs. We argue that the Rugby League should be commended for its initial approach to child protection policy and make specific recommendations to enhance this long-term project. We conclude that if a broader community of interest concerns itself with the safeguarding of children there is likely to be a greater impact on a social problem of this kind. Sport can have a key role to play in this community because it reaches so many people.
Building on the exchange of good practice, which was initiated through the EU-project “Better, Sa... more Building on the exchange of good practice, which was initiated through the EU-project “Better, Safer, Stronger – Prevention of sexual and gender harassment and abuse in sports”, a further transnational project application was successfully coordinated within this priority area. The project is being co-funded by the DAPHNE-III-Programme 2011/2012 of the European Union and was submitted in the priority area “Empowerment work at grass-roots level”. This 2-year project will support young people to develop self-confident behavior against sexualized violence and harassment in sports. The young people will become powerful multipliers and active agents of social change in their settings, affecting peers and raising awareness in the sport environment through youth-led campaigns, which they themselves have created. Parallel to the educational work, multi-sector networks in the national settings of the project partners shall be developed in order to find synergies to support the sport sector after EU-funding has ceased. The initiative is steered by a network of 10 European sport- and socio-cultural organisations and Universities. A final conference in February 2015 will present the results and achievements to the wider public.
The idiom ‘prevention is better than cure’ is never more apparent than when applied to the abuse ... more The idiom ‘prevention is better than cure’ is never more apparent than when applied to the abuse and neglect of children. In recent decades, prevailing attitudes about child abuse have shifted, reflecting a turn to a more holistic approach to safeguarding and an increasing demand that organizations explicitly recognize children’s rights. This chapter discusses the degree to which this agenda has been adopted within national sport systems, and highlights particular initiatives that illustrate the sport sectors’ engagement with these wider concerns. It also identifies elements of resistance, and urges a shift in the way sport and other sectors consider abuse, suggesting that research must be prepared to (further) engage in rigorous and substantial socio-cultural analyses of the myriad of sports environments that children and young people encounter.
The safeguarding of children and young people participating in sport has become an increasingly p... more The safeguarding of children and young people participating in sport has become an increasingly prominent concern in policy-making and research communities around the world.
The project Child Abuse in Sport: European Statistics (CASES) aimed to provide evidence on the pr... more The project Child Abuse in Sport: European Statistics (CASES) aimed to provide evidence on the prevalence of interpersonal violence experienced by children (people under the age of 18) who participate in sport, across different national contexts.<br><br>A partnership of seven research organisations in six European countries and three sport organisations was established to deliver the project, led by Edge Hill<br>University in the United Kingdom (UK).<br><br>The investigation of prevalence of abuse in sport is a relatively new area of research born out of work over the past thirty years that has tried to highlight and expose child<br>abuse in sport. Pioneers in the field, such as Celia Brackenridge, Peter Donnelly, Kari Fasting, Sandra Kirby, and Trish Leahy, have all contributed to the attempt to<br>quantify the scale of the problem. Such efforts support the endeavours of victims and survivors who have challenged the abuse they were subjected to, through the courts,<br>through the media, through advocacy and campaigning, and through their contributions to research.<br>In a similar vein, then, this study sought to build on previous quantitative research whilst offering some contribution to the ongoing and sustained efforts of those with lived experience of abuse and violence in sport to bring about change in their<br>respective national and local contexts. Increasingly, whilst still rare, meaningful partnership between research and the sport sector seem possible in this field, illustrated here through the participation of Sport England, the German Sport Youth, and World Athletics. <br>
This chapter highlights the contemporary policy landscape of safeguarding in global sport beginni... more This chapter highlights the contemporary policy landscape of safeguarding in global sport beginning with a discussion of the extent to which the UK and other countries have shifted from a narrower, reactive child protection agenda towards the more holistic and proactive safeguarding agenda. It also discusses various approaches to safeguarding and protecting children in sport and international developments in this area.
The Routledge Handbook of Youth Sport is a comprehensive survey of the latest research into young... more The Routledge Handbook of Youth Sport is a comprehensive survey of the latest research into young people’s involvement in sport.
While little attention has been paid to stories of boyhood sexual abuse in sport, in recent years... more While little attention has been paid to stories of boyhood sexual abuse in sport, in recent years autobiographical accounts from male “survivors” have emerged in relatively quick succession. This paper argues that this is a significant development for the sports community which requires further attention. More specifically, it argues that the use of narrative analysis is vital to the development of this field of study and illustrates this through the presentation and analysis of two stories of boyhood sexual subjection in male-sport. It is argued that some stories of sexual subjection in male-sport may be well-received while others may not and that social science must be alert to those stories which may transgress dominant notions of the “survivor” story and may be silenced as a result.
Cases of sport-related child sexual abuse have received increasing news coverage in recent years.... more Cases of sport-related child sexual abuse have received increasing news coverage in recent years. This book documents and evaluates this important issue through a critical investigation of the research and theory on sexual violence and child sex offending that has emerged over the past thirty years.
Based on life-history interviews with male and female ‘survivors’ of child sexual abuse in sport, this text offers a deeper appreciation for the experiences of those who are sexually victimized within sports and school-sport settings. Drawing on a wide range of sources, it also provides a new theoretical framework through which child sexual abuse in sport may be explored. Offering a critique spanning psychology, sociology and criminology, this book challenges existing theories of sex offending while advocating an alternative epistemology to help better understand and address this social problem.
"The safeguarding of children and young people participating in sport has become an increasingly ... more "The safeguarding of children and young people participating in sport has become an increasingly prominent concern in policy-making and research communities around the world. Major organisations such as the IOC and UNICEF now officially recognize that children in sport can be at risk of exploitation and abuse, and this concern has led to the emergence of new initiatives and policies aimed at protecting vulnerable young people and athletes. This book is the first to comprehensively review contemporary developments in child protection and safeguarding in sport on a global level.
The book is divided into two parts. Part One critically analyses current child protection and safeguarding policy and practice in sport across a range of countries, including the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, China and Germany, providing a global context for current policy and practice. This represents the most comprehensive review to date of the landscape of child protection and safeguarding in sport and provides a starting point for critical international comparisons. Part Two explores a range of issues related to child protection and safeguarding in sport, including many not covered in previous books, such as emotional abuse, injury and over-training. While in many instances the impetus for policy in this area has arisen from concerns about sexual abuse, the second part of this book therefore opens up a broader, more holistic approach to child and athlete welfare.
By bringing together many of the leading researchers working in child and athlete protection in sport from around the world, this book is important reading for all advanced students, researchers, policy-makers or practitioners working in youth sport, physical education, sports coaching, coach education or child protection."
State-funded national governing bodies of sports in the UK now have a mandate to produce, dissemi... more State-funded national governing bodies of sports in the UK now have a mandate to produce, disseminate and embed child protection policies. This warrants an analysis of the impact of such policies, particularly in the context of reaching their target audience and having some early influence on the practice of sports clubs’ members in their dealings with children. The authors are undertaking a large research project, which aims to fully evaluate the UK Rugby League’s child protection policy. This paper reports findings from an evaluation of the initial implementation of the policy and explores its presentation, delivery and impact within UK rugby league clubs. We argue that the Rugby League should be commended for its initial approach to child protection policy and make specific recommendations to enhance this long-term project. We conclude that if a broader community of interest concerns itself with the safeguarding of children there is likely to be a greater impact on a social problem of this kind. Sport can have a key role to play in this community because it reaches so many people.
Building on the exchange of good practice, which was initiated through the EU-project “Better, Sa... more Building on the exchange of good practice, which was initiated through the EU-project “Better, Safer, Stronger – Prevention of sexual and gender harassment and abuse in sports”, a further transnational project application was successfully coordinated within this priority area. The project is being co-funded by the DAPHNE-III-Programme 2011/2012 of the European Union and was submitted in the priority area “Empowerment work at grass-roots level”. This 2-year project will support young people to develop self-confident behavior against sexualized violence and harassment in sports. The young people will become powerful multipliers and active agents of social change in their settings, affecting peers and raising awareness in the sport environment through youth-led campaigns, which they themselves have created. Parallel to the educational work, multi-sector networks in the national settings of the project partners shall be developed in order to find synergies to support the sport sector after EU-funding has ceased. The initiative is steered by a network of 10 European sport- and socio-cultural organisations and Universities. A final conference in February 2015 will present the results and achievements to the wider public.
The idiom ‘prevention is better than cure’ is never more apparent than when applied to the abuse ... more The idiom ‘prevention is better than cure’ is never more apparent than when applied to the abuse and neglect of children. In recent decades, prevailing attitudes about child abuse have shifted, reflecting a turn to a more holistic approach to safeguarding and an increasing demand that organizations explicitly recognize children’s rights. This chapter discusses the degree to which this agenda has been adopted within national sport systems, and highlights particular initiatives that illustrate the sport sectors’ engagement with these wider concerns. It also identifies elements of resistance, and urges a shift in the way sport and other sectors consider abuse, suggesting that research must be prepared to (further) engage in rigorous and substantial socio-cultural analyses of the myriad of sports environments that children and young people encounter.
The safeguarding of children and young people participating in sport has become an increasingly p... more The safeguarding of children and young people participating in sport has become an increasingly prominent concern in policy-making and research communities around the world.
The project Child Abuse in Sport: European Statistics (CASES) aimed to provide evidence on the pr... more The project Child Abuse in Sport: European Statistics (CASES) aimed to provide evidence on the prevalence of interpersonal violence experienced by children (people under the age of 18) who participate in sport, across different national contexts.<br><br>A partnership of seven research organisations in six European countries and three sport organisations was established to deliver the project, led by Edge Hill<br>University in the United Kingdom (UK).<br><br>The investigation of prevalence of abuse in sport is a relatively new area of research born out of work over the past thirty years that has tried to highlight and expose child<br>abuse in sport. Pioneers in the field, such as Celia Brackenridge, Peter Donnelly, Kari Fasting, Sandra Kirby, and Trish Leahy, have all contributed to the attempt to<br>quantify the scale of the problem. Such efforts support the endeavours of victims and survivors who have challenged the abuse they were subjected to, through the courts,<br>through the media, through advocacy and campaigning, and through their contributions to research.<br>In a similar vein, then, this study sought to build on previous quantitative research whilst offering some contribution to the ongoing and sustained efforts of those with lived experience of abuse and violence in sport to bring about change in their<br>respective national and local contexts. Increasingly, whilst still rare, meaningful partnership between research and the sport sector seem possible in this field, illustrated here through the participation of Sport England, the German Sport Youth, and World Athletics. <br>
This chapter highlights the contemporary policy landscape of safeguarding in global sport beginni... more This chapter highlights the contemporary policy landscape of safeguarding in global sport beginning with a discussion of the extent to which the UK and other countries have shifted from a narrower, reactive child protection agenda towards the more holistic and proactive safeguarding agenda. It also discusses various approaches to safeguarding and protecting children in sport and international developments in this area.
The Routledge Handbook of Youth Sport is a comprehensive survey of the latest research into young... more The Routledge Handbook of Youth Sport is a comprehensive survey of the latest research into young people’s involvement in sport.
While little attention has been paid to stories of boyhood sexual abuse in sport, in recent years... more While little attention has been paid to stories of boyhood sexual abuse in sport, in recent years autobiographical accounts from male “survivors” have emerged in relatively quick succession. This paper argues that this is a significant development for the sports community which requires further attention. More specifically, it argues that the use of narrative analysis is vital to the development of this field of study and illustrates this through the presentation and analysis of two stories of boyhood sexual subjection in male-sport. It is argued that some stories of sexual subjection in male-sport may be well-received while others may not and that social science must be alert to those stories which may transgress dominant notions of the “survivor” story and may be silenced as a result.
This chapter introduces and examines the broad area of child maltreatment and sexual violence in ... more This chapter introduces and examines the broad area of child maltreatment and sexual violence in the context of sport, with a particular focus on sexual violence against children in sport. The chapter selectively covers some of the key issues, approaches, and debates within research, policy, and administration related to the (sexual) abuse and exploitation of children and athletes. Based in social science perspectives, the chapter covers a range of empirical issues, research findings, and theoretical arguments set within the historical development of a relatively new field of inquiry. In policy terms, developments in child protection and safeguarding in sport are discussed. The chapter closes by offering critical discussion on specific areas of debate within the sport sector in relation to its efforts to address child maltreatment and sexual violence.
ABSTRACT The book is divided into two parts. Part One critically analyses current child protectio... more ABSTRACT The book is divided into two parts. Part One critically analyses current child protection and safeguarding policy and practice in sport across a range of countries, including the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, China and Germany, providing a global context for current policy and practice. This provides a starting point for critical international comparisons. Part Two explores a range of issues related to child protection and safeguarding in sport, including many not covered in previous books, such as emotional abuse, injury and over-training. While in many instances the impetus for policy in this area has arisen from concerns about sexual abuse, the second part of this book therefore opens up a broader, more holistic approach to child and athlete welfare. By bringing together many of the leading researchers working in child and athlete protection in sport from around the world, this book is important reading for all advanced students, researchers, policy-makers or practitioners working in youth sport, physical education, sports coaching, coach education or child protection.
International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 2013
Following a high-profile case of child sexual abuse in sport in 1996, the Netherlands Olympic Com... more Following a high-profile case of child sexual abuse in sport in 1996, the Netherlands Olympic Committee and the Netherlands Sports Confederation (NOC*NSF) established a telephone ‘helpline’ service on sexual harassment and abuse (SHA). In order to expand their understanding of this problem, NOC*NSF maintained written records of incidents reported to the helpline. These records revealed 323 separate incidents for the period 2001 to 2010. This paper presents a descriptive analysis of this data and discusses the findings. We conclude that whilst there are major limitations to working with information gathered in this way, a sustainable telephone ‘helpline’ can provide a valuable service for the sports community. Whilst official sources of data are known to under represent the scale of sexual abuse, through collaboration with researchers, such services can also generate important information for policymakers.
Routledge Handbook of Sport, Gender and Sexuality. London: Routledge., Mar 2014
In her seminal work 'Spoilsports' Celia Brackenridge argued that a theory of sexual exploitation ... more In her seminal work 'Spoilsports' Celia Brackenridge argued that a theory of sexual exploitation and abuse in sport was possible and necessary, but also set down some key challenges for researchers about the way in which it should be conceptualised. In particular, Brackenridge argued that it is not possible to arrive at anything like a comprehensive understanding of sexual exploitation in sport without engaging with theories of power. Over a decade after its publication, a response to the challenges she presented is well overdue. Whilst this task is beyond the scope of a single chapter, this discussion offers a contribution towards this effort whilst also serving as an introduction to key areas of debate within the field.
This presentation was delivered as part of the end of funding conference for the EU project 'Spor... more This presentation was delivered as part of the end of funding conference for the EU project 'Sport Respects Your Rights'.
Article based on keynote speech in NOTA News: The National Organisation for the Treatment of Sexu... more Article based on keynote speech in NOTA News: The National Organisation for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (83), p. 9.
Child abuse in sport has only been recognised as a significant problem since the early-2000s, dri... more Child abuse in sport has only been recognised as a significant problem since the early-2000s, driven by a series of high-profile cases of sexual abuse by coaches predominantly in Europe and North America. As a result, measures to protect children in sport are relatively recent additions to the international sport policy agenda, although there is some way to go before responsibility for children’s protection could be said to be fully integrated within sports governance and practice. This chapter focuses on physical, emotional and sexual abuse in sport, providing definitions, examples and data on the prevalence of abuse in sport and highlighting international policy developments in child protection in sport globally. The chapter concludes with a case study of child protection developments in sport in Germany, identifying how sports organizations became aware of child abuse in their ranks and the extent to which they have responded to these concerns.
Hartill, M. & Lang, M. (2015) The Future for Safeguarding in Sport. In: Lang, M. & Hartill, M. (eds.) Safeguarding, Child Protection and Abuse in Sport: International Perspectives in Research, Policy and Practice. London: Routledge. pp. 192–203.
The idiom ‘prevention is better than cure’ is never more apparent than when applied to the abuse ... more The idiom ‘prevention is better than cure’ is never more apparent than when applied to the abuse and neglect of children. In recent decades, prevailing attitudes about child abuse have shifted, reflecting a turn to a more holistic approach to safeguarding and an increasing demand that organizations explicitly recognize children’s rights. This chapter discusses the degree to which this agenda has been adopted within national sport systems, and highlights particular initiatives that illustrate the sport sectors’ engagement with these wider concerns. It also identifies elements of resistance, and urges a shift in the way sport and other sectors consider abuse, suggesting that research must be prepared to (further) engage in rigorous and substantial socio-cultural analyses of the myriad of sports environments that children and young people encounter.
Child protection in sport emerged at the start of the 21st century amidst headlines about coaches... more Child protection in sport emerged at the start of the 21st century amidst headlines about coaches raping, sexually assaulting and abusing children. Against this backdrop, in 2001 the UK government established an independent agency, the English Child Protection in Sport Unit (CPSU), which introduced national child protection standards for sports organizations. This included the requirement to appoint national ‘safeguarding lead officers’. Utilizing the theoretical framework of sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, this paper considers the impact of ‘safeguarding and child protection’ (SCP) within the English sports community through the experiences of those who have been at the vanguard of its implementation in the early years of its establishment within sport. Utilizing data from qualitative interviews with nine national safeguarding lead officers (SLOs), the paper discusses the challenges experienced by SLOs and critically appraises the relation between them (their habitus) and the prevailing logic (capital) within their sporting fields. We discuss the extent to which SLOs have been supported by their organizations and conclude with a consideration of the degree to which national governing bodies of sport (NGBs) have been invested in SCP.
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Based on life-history interviews with male and female ‘survivors’ of child sexual abuse in sport, this text offers a deeper appreciation for the experiences of those who are sexually victimized within sports and school-sport settings. Drawing on a wide range of sources, it also provides a new theoretical framework through which child sexual abuse in sport may be explored. Offering a critique spanning psychology, sociology and criminology, this book challenges existing theories of sex offending while advocating an alternative epistemology to help better understand and address this social problem.
The book is divided into two parts. Part One critically analyses current child protection and safeguarding policy and practice in sport across a range of countries, including the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, China and Germany, providing a global context for current policy and practice. This represents the most comprehensive review to date of the landscape of child protection and safeguarding in sport and provides a starting point for critical international comparisons. Part Two explores a range of issues related to child protection and safeguarding in sport, including many not covered in previous books, such as emotional abuse, injury and over-training. While in many instances the impetus for policy in this area has arisen from concerns about sexual abuse, the second part of this book therefore opens up a broader, more holistic approach to child and athlete welfare.
By bringing together many of the leading researchers working in child and athlete protection in sport from around the world, this book is important reading for all advanced students, researchers, policy-makers or practitioners working in youth sport, physical education, sports coaching, coach education or child protection."
Based on life-history interviews with male and female ‘survivors’ of child sexual abuse in sport, this text offers a deeper appreciation for the experiences of those who are sexually victimized within sports and school-sport settings. Drawing on a wide range of sources, it also provides a new theoretical framework through which child sexual abuse in sport may be explored. Offering a critique spanning psychology, sociology and criminology, this book challenges existing theories of sex offending while advocating an alternative epistemology to help better understand and address this social problem.
The book is divided into two parts. Part One critically analyses current child protection and safeguarding policy and practice in sport across a range of countries, including the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, China and Germany, providing a global context for current policy and practice. This represents the most comprehensive review to date of the landscape of child protection and safeguarding in sport and provides a starting point for critical international comparisons. Part Two explores a range of issues related to child protection and safeguarding in sport, including many not covered in previous books, such as emotional abuse, injury and over-training. While in many instances the impetus for policy in this area has arisen from concerns about sexual abuse, the second part of this book therefore opens up a broader, more holistic approach to child and athlete welfare.
By bringing together many of the leading researchers working in child and athlete protection in sport from around the world, this book is important reading for all advanced students, researchers, policy-makers or practitioners working in youth sport, physical education, sports coaching, coach education or child protection."