This policy should be read alongside the Scottish Esports Child Wellbeing and Protection Policy and its associated procedures.
Visit the NSPCC website for more safeguarding and child protection information.
The purpose of this policy statement
Scottish Esports works with children, young people, and families as part of its activities. These include:
- running a tournament platform for schools and colleges competitions, hosted on a scotesports.org subdomain [address to be confirmed];
- managing a community Discord server, and a staff support Discord for Team Managers (the teachers and lecturers who manage teams);
- broadcasting competitions on our official channels; and
- promoting esports events and activities across Scotland.
The purpose of this policy statement is to:
- ensure the safety and wellbeing of children and young people is paramount when adults, young people or children are using the internet, social media or mobile devices
- provide our people with the overarching principles that guide our approach to online safety
- ensure that, as an organisation, we operate in line with our values and within the law in terms of how we use online devices.
The policy statement applies to our people (everyone who works, volunteers or represents Scottish Esports in any capacity), children and young people, and anyone involved in Scottish Esports activities.
Legal framework
This policy has been drawn up on the basis of legislation, policy and guidance that seeks to protect children in Scotland. Summaries of the key legislation and guidance are available on:
We believe that:
- children and young people should never experience abuse of any kind
- children should be able to use the internet for education and personal development, but safeguards need to be in place to ensure they are kept safe at all times.
We recognise that:
- the online world provides everyone with many opportunities; however it can also present risks and challenges
- we have a duty to ensure that all children, young people and adults involved in Scottish Esports activities are protected from potential harm online
- we have a responsibility to help keep children and young people safe online, whether or not they are using the Scottish Esports network and devices
- working in partnership with children, young people, their parents/carers, schools, colleges and other agencies is essential in promoting young people’s welfare and in helping young people to be responsible in their approach to online safety
- all children, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation, have the right to equal protection from all types of harm or abuse.
We will seek to keep children and young people safe by:
- appointing a Child Wellbeing and Protection Officer (CWPO), who is also responsible for online safety, and a Deputy CWPO
- providing clear and specific directions to our people on how to behave online through the Scottish Esports Code of Conduct and the Digital Safety & Conduct Guidelines in our Child Wellbeing and Protection Policy
- supporting and encouraging the young people taking part in our activities to use the internet, social media and mobile phones in a way that keeps them safe and shows respect for others
- supporting and encouraging parents/carers to do what they can to keep their children safe online
- developing clear and robust procedures to enable us to respond appropriately to any incidents of inappropriate online behaviour, whether by an adult or a child or young person
- reviewing and updating the security of our information systems regularly
- ensuring that user names, logins, email accounts and passwords are used effectively
- ensuring personal information about the adults and children who are involved in Scottish Esports activities is held securely and shared only as appropriate (Scottish Esports does not collect or store personal information about players under 18 in its competitions)
- ensuring that images of children, young people and families are used only after their written permission has been obtained, and only for the purpose for which consent has been given (for schools and colleges competitions, this consent is held by the school or college)
- providing supervision, support and training for our people about online safety
- examining and risk assessing any social media platforms and new technologies before they are used within Scottish Esports.
If online abuse occurs, we will respond to it by:
- having clear and robust safeguarding procedures in place for responding to abuse (including online abuse)
- providing support and training for all our people on dealing with all forms of abuse, including bullying or cyberbullying, emotional abuse, sexting, sexual abuse and sexual exploitation
- making sure our response takes the needs of the person experiencing abuse, any bystanders and Scottish Esports as a whole into account
- reviewing the plan developed to address online abuse at regular intervals, in order to ensure that any problems have been resolved in the long term.
Related policies and procedures
This policy statement should be read alongside our other policies and procedures, including:
- Child Wellbeing and Protection Policy
- Child Wellbeing and Protection Responding to Concerns Procedure (how to report a concern to the CWPO). Where a child or young person takes part through a school or college, that school or college’s own procedures for responding to concerns also apply
- Scottish Esports Code of Conduct (for Staff, Volunteers and Team Managers; Players; and Parents, Carers and Spectators)
- Anti-bullying: in Scottish Esports spaces, bullying is covered by our Code of Conduct and the General Competition Rules (section 11). In school or college, the school or college’s own anti-bullying policy applies
- Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Policy
- Photography and image sharing guidance (as detailed in section 13 of the General Competition Rules)
Contact details
Child Wellbeing and Protection Officer (CWPO)
- Name: Mark McCready
- Email: safeguarding@scotesports.org
Deputy CWPO
- Name: Dale Murray
- Email: safeguarding@scotesports.org
If a child is in immediate danger, contact emergency services.
NSPCC Helpline
We are committed to reviewing our policy and good practice annually.
This policy was last reviewed on: 24/09/2026
Next review due: 24/09/2027
Signed: Mark McCready
Date: 24/09/2026
