BHA Refreshes Safeguarding and Human Welfare Education for Employees

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has launched enhanced online safeguarding and human welfare education in an effort to provide a safe environment to industry employees. Thanks to the authority’s new racing module, industry workers will be able to complete a refreshed education on creating a safe and inclusive environment.

New Modules Have Been Added

The refreshed education – Safeguarding and Human Welfare: Creating a Safe and Inclusive Sport – is available on Racing2Learn, the BHA’s e-learning module. First introduced in 2018, the education has become a necessity for BHA-licensed companies and personnel.

Overall, the course includes the following modules:

• Module 1: Safeguarding and Human Welfare
• Module 2: Anti-Sexual Harassment and Misogyny
• Module 3: Creating a Safe and Inclusive Sport

As Module 1 suggests, the training teaches workers the essentials of their responsibility to create a safe environment for consumers and protect younger and high-risk players from harm.

The updated version also incorporates wider aspects of human welfare, which is in line with the BHA’s desire to protect everyone working in British racing and breeding. As a result, the training now includes Module 2, which covers key areas such as bullying and sexual harassment.

The final module, meanwhile, seeks to drive improvements when it comes to behavioral standards and reporting mechanisms.

Facing The Challenges

BHA-licensed personnel, such as trainers, jockeys, valets and agents, will be contacted soon about completing the digital education. They will be given until April 1 to complete the module. Other industry workers will also be able to access the educational materials for free, reflecting a wider effort to make the industry safer.

The new module also includes a toolkit and explanatory webinar which are available on Racing2Learn.

Matt Mancini, head of safeguarding and human welfare at the BHA, said that the refreshed training represents an important milestone in the efforts to create a safe, supportive and respectful working environment for industry workers.

Mancini explained that the new learning has been developed in partnership with key industry stakeholders to ensure it offers proven practices for identifying and reporting issues.

While Mancini admitted that excellent levels of care and support already exist, he pointed out that there are also outstanding challenges amid reports of bullying and sexual harassment.

Safeguarding and the wellbeing of our people is everyone’s responsibility; we all have an important role to play in promoting good behaviors, acting where conduct falls short of our high standards, and contributing to a universal culture of respect.

Matt Mancini, head of safeguarding and human welfare, BHA

Mancini concluded that high standards will ensure the industry’s longevity.