WHAT CAN YOU DO?
The PFA provides members with a 24/7 counselling telephone helpline. This ’round-the-clock’ support is available to all players past and present.
The PFA Safety Net is another tool that is free to access at all times every day. It is a place where you can get individual help and advice and contains information regarding issues that people and players in particular, may have difficulty with from time to time.
All services are private and confidential, current or former players (or concerned friends and family) can contact the PFA.
Other people able to offer support may include your parents or a trusted member of your club/college staff. Your LFE Regional Officer is also there to help access support for you. Any discussions you have with your LFE Regional Officer will be treated in the strictest confidence and any further action they take will first be explained and agreed by you.
Contact details for your Regional Officer can be found on the ‘Contact LFE‘ page of the website.
LFE recommends that you talk to one of the above people or organisations about any problems you are experiencing. They will better understand your specific situation and be able to direct you to further help and support.
Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre
Ever-increasing numbers of young people across the UK have access to the internet. It is central to how they stay in touch with their friends and family. However, the internet is also a public place and while bringing many benefits and opportunities, also opens up new risks and challenges. That’s why League Football Education has teamed up with the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre.
CEOP is part of the UK police, set up to tackle the sexual exploitation of children. The CEOP Centre aims to educate children, young people, their parents, carers and fans to understand the risks they may face online and what they can do to empower themselves to stay safe. They also track, locate and hold child sexual offenders to account.
LFE uses the internet to communicate to apprentices, to English Football League clubs, to parents and carers. It’s important to understand how to make use of this technology appropriately and working with the CEOP Centres education programme ‘Thinkuknow’ will help to do this. While the Thinkuknow website targets advice at specific age groups up to the age of 16 years, LFE encourages apprentices to use the Thinkuknow programme principles of safe use of the internet as good practice guidance for young players up to 18 years.
