Important: This is general information, not legal advice or a determination that any club or person is compliant. Check current legislation and your governing body's rules.
Short answer: build the register around people, roles, requirements, evidence and review dates—not a single colour-coded status cell. Whether the club uses dedicated software or another controlled system, ownership and review rules matter as much as the tool.
Define the model first
- List current roles and the activity each role performs.
- Map each role to requirements sourced from current NGB policy.
- Record each requirement separately, including its source and review rule.
- Give named people responsibility for verification and follow-up.
- Record changes so the club can explain who confirmed what and when.
Design for change
People change teams, policies change and training or re-vetting rules can differ. Avoid hard-coding one expiry assumption across every sport. Keep the source policy alongside the operational rule and schedule periodic checks.
Control the personal data
The DPC advises organisations to know what they hold, why, where it is stored, who has access and how it will be disposed of. A replacement for a spreadsheet is only an improvement if the club also improves access, accuracy, retention and accountability.
Official and primary sources
- Sport Ireland — Safeguarding FAQs
- Data Protection Commission — Data Security Guidance
- Data Protection Commission — Accountability
Sources were accessed and checked on 12 August 2026.