Introduction
Inappropriate behaviour in the sport and recreation industry has unfortunately hit the headlines in recent times:

• In 1993 Tony Branighan, then State Development Officer for Baseball, pleaded guilty to 51 charges of sex offences against teenage boys, two aged 15 and one aged 12.  He was jailed for 10 years with the judge noting that one of the most disturbing aspects was the "clear and blatant breach of trust".
• In 1995 Ian Lumsden, NSW and Australian swimming coach was found guilty of indecent assault and attempting to have unlawful carnal knowledge with one of his 12 year old swimming students.
• In 1996 allegations were made against rowing coach, Simon Gillet, that he had an affair with female members of his crew.  He denied these allegations.
• In 1997 Steve Woods, Olympic Australian canoe coach committed suicide following charges of rape of a 15 and 20 year old  women. 
• Steve Randell, Australian Cricket Umpire and primary school teacher was found guilty of indecent assault.
• Also this year, National Women's Softball coach, Kevin Henderson pleaded guilty to counts of sex with a 17 year old athlete under his care, supervision and authority.

These incidents are tragic for the sport and recreation industry.  They have also tragic for those abused, those wrongfully accused and for the sport people concerned. 

However, they highlight the need for sport and recreation providers, their staff and participants to understand their legal (and moral) obligations to each other.

The legal obligations arise out of the provider's duty of care to its members and athletes, any contracts it has with its officials and others, the criminal law and human rights laws, for example, the legislation recently introduced in NSW which requires employers to screen prospective and existing employees who are working with children.

Complying with these legal obligations requires sports and recreation providers to implement good risk management strategies.  Some suggested steps are detailed below.

Risk Management
Steps which should be considered by sports and recreation providers are as follows:

1. Establish, implement and promote a user friendly and confidential complaints process, so there is a process for supervisors and users to raise concerns at an early stage and a process for a speedy resolution.
2. Develop or adopt a Code of Ethics for your employees and workers.  Incorporate these into contracts with them.
3. Consider the merits of obtaining Police checks from prospective supervisors before they apply for positions, especially where those positions involve dealing with youth
4. Consider other pre-appointment screening methods, such as reference checks, psychological evaluations and thorough assessment of the applicant's values and work practices.  For example, knowing what characteristics indicate an increased likelihood of behaviour which poses a risk to children should be essential knowledge when recruiting supervisors.  The National Association for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (NAPCAN) states* that research has shown these characteristics include that the person has:
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