The under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport said “more must be done” to ensure safety standards are robust
Sport England authorities have been instructed to “urgently improve” the future of children’s sports after a 15-year-old boy was fatally injured during a kick-boxing match. Alex Eastwood, from Fazakerley, died three days after suffering a “catastrophic” head injury.
The world championship winner fought three individual rounds at the TKMA gym in Platt Bridge, Wigan, before collapsing. He was taken to Royal Albert Edward Infirmary in Wigan, where he was placed in an induced coma before being transferred to Manchester Children’s Hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery for a brain bleed. His condition deteriorated and he died in the early hours of July 2 last year.
Sport England has now been instructed by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to “explore ways to urgently improve the safety and welfare of children in martial arts” after an inquest heard there were “no guidelines for health and safety” at the kickboxing match that led to Alex’s death.
The court also heard kickboxing clubs were not required to register with governing authorities such as Kickboxing GB, and that many were independently-run and regulated.
Liverpool Walton MP Dan Carden raised the issue in the House of Commons on July 8, in a debate attended by Alex’s dad Stephen and stepmum Nikita.
He said: “Alex’s family have shown extraordinary courage in the face of unimaginable grief by turning their pain into a powerful call for change. Alex’s death was not simply a tragic accident but a preventable loss, and it has highlighted a dangerous gap in our duty to protect children.
“On the broader framework governing children’s participation in combat sports, the inquest heard that standards around safety, medical oversight and safeguarding vary widely, and in many cases are absent all together.
“In the words of the coroner, the level of confidence in organisational safeguards that people would expect to exist within the sport is ‘sadly lacking’.
“If a match is unofficial or unsanctioned, there is no guideline minimum standard that must be met to provide safeguarding for a child participant, no minimum standard of medical support that might be required, no maximum rounds, no periods of rest, no welfare checks on participants, and no risk assessment and critical incident plan.
“It should stop us all in our tracks to learn that in this country, children can be placed in combat situations without clear, enforceable national protections.
“Alex’s family did everything right—everything a loving family would do. They encouraged him to get involved in a range of sports and activities and supported him when it became clear that he had a talent for kickboxing. They enabled him to thrive in what he loved doing and to become a six-time world champion. However, as the inquest made clear, they and Alex were failed by a lack of safeguarding, responsibility and regulation.”
Stephanie Peacock, under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, said the Department had tasked Sport England with working with the martial arts sector on the issue.
She said: “It will identify improvements and present a plan in the coming months. That work will include developing guidance for the martial arts sector and reviewing the safeguarding code for martial arts to ensure that it reflects best practice and is fit for purpose.
“Sport England will also work with the NSPCC to help educate parents and carers on what to look for in choosing where to participate in martial arts. That will involve the NSPCC’s Keeping Your Child Safe in Sport Week—a week of educational programming in October.
“My Department is also exploring ways to strengthen safety standards in clubs and competitions that are not affiliated with national governing bodies. We are having conversations with the martial arts sector to understand how we can help parents and carers to be confident that their children will be safe when they participate. Our aim will be to ensure that safeguarding practices in martial arts are consistent, effective and transparent.”
She added: “Sport should be a safe and welcoming environment that participants, parents and carers can have confidence in. Many martial arts providers work hard to safeguard children who participate under their supervision, and there are strong safety practices in place across many areas of combat sport, but more must be done to ensure that safety standards are strong, consistent and transparent.
“Standards of practice should be robust and widely adopted across the sector, and it should be clear to parents and carers which clubs and competitions comply with shared standards and which do not.”
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