Photos, videos and social media: protecting the young people of your club online

By Géraldine Heinen28 August 20268 min read

Competition photos, training videos, WhatsApp groups, the club's Facebook page: digital tools are part of the life of every sports club, and that is a good thing. They serve to celebrate performances, promote activities and keep everyone informed. This guide does not aim to limit these uses, but to make sure that children are protected from those who might want to take or manipulate images in a way that could harm them, and that online communication between adults and young people remains healthy for everyone. It complements our 5-step toolkit, whose "promotion and communication" guidelines it details.

1. Using images of young people under 18 safely

Photos, films and video recordings are excellent ways of promoting a club's events and activities. They can be used to celebrate performances, promote activities and keep people informed about what is going on. The question is therefore not whether to photograph or film, but how to do it while protecting children. Three principles structure the whole approach: young people and their parents are informed and give their agreement, filming takes place in a safe setting, and what is published never makes it possible to identify a child or put them in a difficult position.

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2. The consent of parents and young people

Children and their parents or guardians must be informed that the child may sometimes be photographed or filmed while taking part in club activities. The reasons for recording may be the following:

• video footage for performance development;
• media coverage of an event or a performance;
• promotional purposes, for example for a website or a publication.

Written consent must be obtained from parents or guardians before photos or videos are taken, for example through a consent form included in the registration file (a template is included in our codes of conduct to download). Young people aged 18 and over give their own consent, both to appear in images and to their publication.

Two separate boxes rather than one: many parents are happy to accept a group photo on the club's website, but would rather their child did not appear on social media, where the image quickly escapes the club's control. Leaving them this choice builds trust.

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3. The basic rules for photos and videos

To minimise the risk of harm to children, four rules apply to all the club's filming and publications:

• Never one-to-one sessions. Unsupervised access or one-to-one photo or video sessions with minors are not allowed. At least one member of the coaching staff or the child's parents or guardians are present at every individual session.
• Never in private spaces. Photographing or filming is not allowed in changing rooms, bathrooms or bedrooms (during camps and trips with overnight stays).
• Never information that could identify a child. Information published on the website or social media never contains detailed personal data that could identify a child: home address, e-mail address, telephone number.
• Never a degrading image. Children are never represented in a demeaning, tasteless or provocative way. Everyone represented is appropriately dressed, at a minimum in full sports kit.

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4. Digital communication and social media: the risks

There are many ways of sharing information and communicating via information and communication technologies and social media. Their misuse can, however, expose children to considerable risks, and adults to delicate situations.

For children, the risks include:

• inappropriate access to, use or sharing of their personal data;
• unwanted contact with adults with malicious or questionable intentions;
• receiving offensive or otherwise inappropriate material;
• cyberbullying;
• grooming with a view to sexual abuse (see the definition in our article on the safeguarding policy).

For adults, the risks include:

a misinterpretation of their communication with children, which can lead to possible investigations (internal, disciplinary or by the authorities) and to possible disciplinary measures. A coach who exchanges private messages with a young person, even with the best intentions, puts themselves in a difficult position.

As a general rule, adults never engage in inappropriate use of social media. This includes sending direct messages to children and posting comments that could endanger a child's well-being, harm them or harm the club's reputation.

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5. How to communicate with young people online

The general principle is simple: all communication goes, wherever possible, through parents or guardians. If this is not possible, the club asks the permission of the parents or guardians and of the child, prefers e-mail to instant messaging, and includes at least two adults in the communication. In practice, for a club, this means for example: a chat group created with the parents (and not with the young people alone), administered by two coaches, with posting rules known to all; and practical information (timetables, travel) distributed through the club's official channels rather than through private conversations.

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6. Reporting a concern

If the use of an image or the associated information seems inappropriate at any time, the abuse is reported to the club's safeguarding lead. Anyone behaving in a way that could reasonably be considered inappropriate with regard to taking photos or videos of children or using social media must be reported. Where appropriate, concerns are also reported to the police. As with any safeguarding concern, it is not up to the person reporting to judge the seriousness: it is the act of reporting that counts.

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7. Protecting yourself from online hate

Another important aspect is protecting athletes from online harassment and hate speech. By thinking carefully about what is posted on social media, athletes can protect themselves from negative comments and hurtful interactions. Clubs play an important role by adopting a proactive policy and teaching their members how to protect themselves online, in particular by using privacy settings and avoiding sharing sensitive information.

A few tips for protecting an online account:

• limit unwanted interactions by choosing yourself who can react to your content;
• activate a language filter to automatically remove offensive comments;
• block accounts that repeatedly post offensive or negative comments.

Further guidelines for securing accounts can be found in the Facebook and Instagram safety guide.

If an athlete, a parent or a club member encounters hate speech, harassment or discriminatory statements online, it is important to report it immediately, first to the club, so that it can document the incident and help take further steps. Prompt reporting makes it possible to deal with the situation before it gets worse. The club has no direct power to have content removed or to prosecute a perpetrator; on the other hand, it can point to the competent bodies, and a report can also be made directly to the police.

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8. Useful resources in Belgium

Several Belgian bodies answer the questions clubs and families ask themselves: what to do when you are the target of online hate speech, where to report it, what happens next, and what a club can do to limit this behaviour. If you are based elsewhere, look for the equivalent bodies in your own country: an equality body, the police's cybercrime unit and a child helpline.

• Unia, online hate file (in French): the Belgian interfederal centre for equal opportunities explains how to deal with online hate speech and lets you report discrimination or a hateful message.
• Federal police, reporting a message inciting hatred (in French): the procedure for reporting to the police.
• Child Focus: for any situation involving a minor online (cyberbullying, contact with a malicious adult, sextortion), with a free helpline on 116 000, available day and night.

Sports federations, in Belgian football in particular, also share resources and reporting procedures specific to their discipline on online hate speech; affiliated clubs would do well to consult those of their own federation.

A good practice for your club: put these three addresses, with the club's contact person, on a poster in the entrance hall and in the start-of-season e-mail to parents. That is exactly what the "support and resources" section of our free self-assessment measures.

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