The SAFE HARBOUR consortium submitted its second deliverable, the GAP Report, in December 2025.  The SAFE HARBOUR GAP Report provides a comprehensive assessment of existing safeguarding structures, procedures, and support services across 20 European National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and 2 International Federations (IFs) in relation to the handling of safeguarding concerns.

The SAFE HARBOUR GAP Report provides a comprehensive analysis of existing procedures and services for responding to safeguarding concerns. By focusing on mapping current policies, reporting mechanisms, and organisational capacities, while identifying both strengths and areas requiring further development, the analysis offers a strong evidence base to support sport stakeholders across Europe in strengthening their safeguarding frameworks and aligning their practices, thereby contributing to safer sporting environments.

Remarkably, the GAP Report highlights that while all IFs and over half of NOCs have safeguarding policies in place that are generally applied year-round, and almost all IFs and NOCs have appointed safeguarding officers - many of whom are trained and responsible for managing existing reporting mechanisms - there is broad recognition of the need to further strengthen safeguarding capacity.  Indeed, persistent challenges relating to leadership commitment, human resource capacity, financial constraints, legal complexity, geographical barriers, policy coverage, classification and evaluation processes continue to result in procedural inconsistencies, fragmented data handling, limited support among other challenges. Therefore, robust decision-making and monitoring frameworks, standardised classification and case management systems, minimum reporting standards, as well as practical joint tools, resources, training, peer exchange, and networking opportunities, appear essential to tackle the identified gaps.

Overall, the evidence-based approach of the SAFE HARBOUR GAP Report, combined with the clear commitment of partner NOCs and IFs to address challenges related to capacity, leadership, legal complexity and clarity, and case management tools, positions the SAFE HARBOUR consortium to meaningfully develop and implement more robust, effective, and coherent safeguarding policies and procedures. Furthermore, as additional European NOCs complete the GAP questionnaire and a wider range of sport stakeholders engage with the report’s findings, the SAFE HARBOUR project is expected to concretely contribute to boost collective evidence-based understanding of strengths and gaps in safeguarding and ultimately encourage a broader cultural shift towards safer sport, at all levels across Europe.  In this context, SAFE HARBOUR aims to be bringing together key stakeholders to lay the foundations for the European Network for Safe Sport and the IOC Regional Safeguarding Hub in Europe.

Stay tuned for the latest updates on the SAFE HARBOUR project through its website and LinkedIn page, and by subscribing to the SAFE HARBOUR Newsletter.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE SAFE HARBOUR PROJECT. The SAFE HARBOUR project, short for “Strengthening Response Mechanisms for Safeguarding in European Sport”, is a 30-month project co-funded by the European Union through the Erasmus+ Sport Programme 2024. Coordinated by the EOC EU Office, the consortium includes Thomas More and Asser Institute as experts on safeguarding, human rights and law, 2 International Federations (International Biathlon Union and International Ice Hockey Federations), and 20 National Olympic Committees (Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Montenegro, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia). Additionally, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is involved as an outside resource.

The project seeks to strengthen the capacity of European NOCs and Federations to address safeguarding concerns by identifying gaps, developing a European Response framework, and fostering collaboration. This framework will be adapted to national contexts, complemented by training and awareness initiatives to enhance safeguarding measures at both national and European levels. Therefore, SAFE HARBOUR aims to equip partner NOCs and Federations with the tools and confidence to implement effective safeguarding measures while establishing a robust support network for Safeguarding Officers and laying the groundwork for a future IOC Regional Safeguarding Hub.