A running club welfare concern does not always begin with a dramatic incident. A member may seem unusually withdrawn, tell a run leader that they are struggling, report upsetting behaviour or repeatedly leave sessions feeling unwell. Sometimes an attendance change prompts somebody to check in.
The club’s job is not to diagnose the member, conduct an amateur investigation or solve every personal difficulty. It is to listen, identify any immediate risk, involve the right person and keep an appropriate record of what happens next.
A simple, agreed process helps volunteers respond consistently while protecting the member’s privacy. The following steps provide a practical starting point, but clubs should also follow the policies and reporting procedures of their governing body.
Start by deciding what kind of concern you are dealing with
Before beginning a routine club follow-up, consider whether the situation needs an urgent or specialist response.
An immediate emergency
If somebody is in immediate danger or requires urgent medical assistance, call 999. Do not delay an emergency response while trying to contact the committee, complete a form or decide how the incident should be categorised.
A safeguarding concern
A concern involving possible abuse or neglect of somebody under 18 or an Adult at Risk should not be treated as an ordinary member disagreement. Current England Athletics welfare guidance directs these concerns to the UK Athletics Safeguarding Team.
Clubs can use the UK Athletics safeguarding concern route rather than trying to investigate the allegation themselves. Preserve the information received, avoid confronting the person who may be involved and seek specialist guidance promptly.
Serious misconduct or a possible criminal matter
Escalation may also be appropriate where a concern involves physical violence, threats, a potential criminal matter or somebody in a regulated position such as a licensed coach. Seek guidance if there is a conflict of interest, the club cannot handle the matter impartially or the volunteers involved feel out of their depth.
A lower-level welfare or conduct issue
Some matters can be managed through the club’s own welfare, complaints or conduct process. Examples might include a member feeling excluded, a breakdown in communication, insensitive behaviour or somebody asking for support after a difficult experience.
Lower-level does not mean unimportant. It means the club can respond proportionately while remaining ready to escalate if new information changes its understanding of the situation.
A practical seven-step welfare process
1. Listen without making promises you cannot keep
Give the person enough time and privacy to explain the concern in their own words. Avoid interrupting them with solutions or asking leading questions.
Do not promise absolute confidentiality. Explain that information will only be shared with people who need it to decide what action is required. This is more honest than promising secrecy and later discovering that the concern must be escalated.
2. Check whether anyone is at immediate risk
Ask only the questions needed to establish whether urgent action is required. Is somebody currently unsafe? Does the member need immediate medical help? Does the concern involve a child or Adult at Risk?
This initial check should not become a detailed interview. Its purpose is to identify the correct next step, not to prove or disprove what happened.
3. Pass the concern to the right club contact
Run leaders and session volunteers should know who receives welfare concerns when the designated welfare officer is available and who acts as the backup when they are not.
Record who has taken responsibility for the next action. Avoid vague handovers such as “the committee knows about it”, which can result in everybody assuming somebody else will follow up.
4. Make a factual record
Write down the relevant facts as soon as reasonably possible. A useful welfare record may include:
- the date and time the concern was raised;
- who raised it and who received it;
- a concise description of what was reported or observed;
- the person’s own words where a particular statement is significant;
- whether any immediate risk was identified;
- actions already taken;
- any referral or advice requested;
- the person responsible for follow-up; and
- the next review or contact date.
Separate observations from assumptions. “The member was crying and said they did not feel safe running with the group” is a factual note. “The member is having a mental health crisis because of another runner” is an interpretation unless those facts have been established by an appropriate professional or process.
If the concern arose from an accident, injury or near miss, the club may also need an incident record. The guide to what a running club should record after an accident or incident explains that process in more detail.
5. Agree a proportionate action
The next step will depend on the nature of the concern. It might involve arranging a private follow-up conversation, adjusting a practical aspect of a session, reminding members about expected conduct, using the club’s complaints procedure or referring the matter for specialist guidance.
Do not automatically share the complete record with the full committee. Decide who needs the information to perform a specific role. A treasurer, social secretary or unrelated run leader is unlikely to need sensitive welfare details simply because they hold a volunteer position.
6. Follow up when you said you would
A concern can feel more upsetting when somebody speaks up and then hears nothing. Even if there is no final outcome yet, a short update can confirm that the matter has not been forgotten.
Set a realistic follow-up date and record whether contact was made. Where appropriate, ask the member what form of contact they prefer and whether there are practical steps that would help them continue participating safely and comfortably.
7. Close the record carefully
A welfare case should not remain indefinitely marked as active because nobody recorded the outcome. Add a dated closing note explaining what action was completed, whether any continuing arrangement remains in place and why the matter is considered closed.
Closure does not always mean the underlying personal situation has been resolved. It may simply mean the club has completed the actions within its responsibility.
Handle sensitive information with care
Welfare notes can contain health information or other highly sensitive personal details. Information concerning health is classed as special category data, so clubs should not collect it casually or store it across personal inboxes, messaging groups and volunteers’ notebooks.
The Information Commissioner’s Office guidance on special category data explains that organisations need an Article 6 lawful basis and an applicable Article 9 condition. It also stresses data minimisation, appropriate security, transparency and documentation.
In practical terms, a club should:
- record only information needed for a clear club purpose;
- restrict access to appropriate authorised roles;
- tell members how relevant personal data may be used;
- define how long different records will be retained;
- review and securely remove information when it is no longer required; and
- document the club’s chosen lawful basis and special category condition.
Data protection decisions depend on the circumstances, so committees should obtain suitable advice rather than copying another club’s approach without checking it. Running Club Check-In’s privacy policy also explains how information is handled within the service.
Do not rely on attendance data alone
A sudden change in attendance can occasionally suggest that a familiar member may appreciate a friendly check-in. However, missing sessions does not prove that somebody has a welfare problem. Work, holidays, injuries, family commitments and changes in routine are all common explanations.
Use attendance records as a prompt for a considerate conversation, not as a tool for diagnosing people or pressuring them to return. A neutral message such as “We haven’t seen you for a little while and wanted to check that everything is OK” leaves the member free to decide what they wish to share.
A quick checklist for run-night volunteers
- Listen calmly and move the conversation somewhere reasonably private.
- Check for immediate danger or urgent medical need.
- Do not promise secrecy or start your own investigation.
- Pass the matter to the welfare officer or agreed backup.
- Record facts, actions, ownership and the follow-up date.
- Escalate safeguarding and serious concerns through the correct route.
- Share sensitive details only with people who genuinely need them.
- Confirm that the member receives an appropriate update.
Make the process easy to follow before it is needed
The best time to agree a welfare process is before a difficult concern is raised. Committees should give volunteers a named contact, a backup route, a short recording template and clear escalation guidance.
A central system can also prevent sensitive notes and follow-up actions becoming scattered between volunteers. Explore Running Club Check-In’s welfare recording features to see how concerns and subsequent actions can be kept organised with controlled access.
If your committee wants to evaluate the wider attendance, membership, welfare and incident workflows, you can create a free club site without entering payment details.
This article provides general operational guidance for UK running clubs. It is not a substitute for legal, medical or case-specific safeguarding advice.
