Australia’s Children Are Reaching Breaking Point. Sport Needs To Step Up.

The latest State of Australia’s Children 2025 report delivers a confronting message:

Australia is a nation rich in resources, goodwill and opportunity – yet far too many children are unsafe, unsupported or slipping through the cracks.

And in the middle of this sits community sport.

For millions of children, sport is the single most consistent place they go each week outside school and home. It’s where they learn confidence, belonging, boundaries and identity. It’s where trusted adults are (or should be) watching. And it’s often the only place where early warning signs show up long before a crisis.

This report makes it painfully clear:

Sport is no longer “just sport”. It is part of Australia’s child safety system – whether clubs realise it or not.

The Risks Facing Children Are Growing – And They’re Walking Through Our Club Gates Every Week

The report highlights several trends that should be flashing red lights for boards, club presidents and volunteers across the country.

1. Discrimination and social harm are rising

Nearly 1 in 3 young people report experiencing discrimination in the past year.
For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people, it’s 2 in 5.
Children with disability report discrimination at more than double the rate of their peers.

This plays out in sport daily: teasing, exclusion, “banter” that crosses the line, parents on sidelines, or subtle decisions about who gets picked, supported or believed.

2. Mental distress is becoming the norm

Psychological distress among young Australians has jumped sharply. Suicide remains the leading cause of death for ages 15–24.

Kids feel lonelier, less connected and less willing to reach out.

Sport may be the only place a young person has consistent positive adult interaction – but many coaches and volunteers feel unprepared for what children bring with them.

3. Developmental vulnerability is at a 10-year high

Only 52.9% of children starting school are developmentally on track. This means more children struggling with:

Emotional regulation
Social skills
Anxiety and overwhelm
Communication challenges
Impulse control

Clubs are reporting more meltdowns, more conflict, more withdrawn behaviour and more children who need tailored support.

4. Bullying and online harm are spilling into sport

Over half of children aged 10–17 have been cyberbullied, and nearly three-quarters have seen harmful content.

Conflicts that start online come to training. Team chats turn toxic. Screens are now another safeguarding risk sport must actively manage.

5. Participation in community sport is falling

Weekly sport participation has dropped from 59% to 51%. This isn’t simply because kids are “lazy” or “on screens”.

It’s because:

Fees are rising,
Families are stretched,
Kids feel unsafe or unwelcome, and
Clubs are struggling with volunteer capacity.

Sport is losing the very children who need it most.

The Message Is Clear: Sport Must Become a Safe, Predictable and Protective Environment

For many kids, community sport is:

Their safest place,
Their most stable routine,
The only environment with positive role models,
The only venue where adults notice when something isn’t right.

But this safety doesn’t happen by accident. It requires governance, training, processes, oversight and culture.

And that’s where clubs are falling down – not out of neglect, but because volunteers are overwhelmed, undertrained and stretched thin.

The report highlights the same systemic weaknesses that Safeguarding You sees every day:

Inconsistent standards across clubs
High volunteer turnover
Limited reporting pathways
Behaviour issues not addressed early
Poor understanding of legal obligations
Low confidence in responding to incidents
Cultural and disability inclusion gaps

Community sport does extraordinary things. But we are asking under-resourced volunteers to run a child safety system without giving them the tools, time or training to do it properly.

So What Needs to Change?

The report calls for early intervention, better oversight, stronger governance and environments where children feel valued, safe and supported.

In sport, that translates to:

1. Building trauma-aware, child-safe cultures

Every coach and volunteer needs practical, evidence-based training on recognising and responding to distress, harm, exclusion and early signs of risk.

2. Establishing clear governance and compliance systems

Policies sitting in a Google Drive aren’t enough. Clubs need:

Consistent standards
Risk assessments
Incident reporting and review processes
Evidence for audits
Clear lines of accountability

3. Creating safe, inclusive and culturally respectful environments

Sport must reflect – and respect – the diversity of children who walk through its gates, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander kids, LGBTQ+ youth, children with disability, neurodiverse children and young people in challenging home environments.

4. Supporting families under stress

Fee relief, equipment libraries, meal programs, flexible participation… Small actions change lives.

5. Ensuring children have a voice in their experience of sport

This is not optional. The report makes this unmistakably clear.

When children feel heard, they feel safe. When they feel safe, they thrive – and stay involved.

Community Sport Can Be One of Australia’s Most Powerful Child Safety Interventions

Here’s the hopeful part:

The report isn’t doom and gloom. It’s a roadmap – and sport is one of the sectors best positioned to take action quickly.

Clubs already know how to build belonging. They know how to rally communities. They know how to support families when they need it.

What they haven’t always had is a clear, practical framework to lift their child safety, governance and compliance to modern standards.

That’s where Safeguarding You slots in.

Not as another burden on volunteers. But as the tool that removes the burden, simplifies the work and makes safeguarding part of everyday club operations.

Safeguarding isn’t a box to tick.

It’s culture.
It’s risk management.
It’s participation.
It’s community trust.

It’s why families choose your club – or walk away.

Final Thought: Children Need Us to Step Up – Now

The report makes one thing unmistakably clear:

The wellbeing of Australia’s children is at a critical tipping point – and every environment they move through must be safe, inclusive and protective.

Community sport is one of the few places where early intervention can be done well, consistently and at scale.

If clubs get this right, we don’t just protect children.