The publication of an action plan by the Government to tackle concussion in sport has been welcomed, although campaigners slammed its omission of the implications of the long-term damage caused by repeated head impacts as a “kick in the face”.
The new plan sets out steps that will be taken to improve understanding, awareness, prevention and treatment of concussion in sport in grassroots, educational and elite settings.
The strategy, developed after the DCMS Select Committee Inquiry into concussion in sport earlier this year, will be tackled through a combination of improved research and the use of new technologies.
However, while the move to tackle the problem – backed by increasing volumes of evidence linking head impacts in sport with neurodegenerative disease – has been praised, the fact the plan does not address early-onset dementia or CTE has been condemned.
England Rugby World Cup winner Steve Thompson called it a “sick joke”.
“This is a kick in the face by the Government to completely ignore the real issue of early-onset dementia and CTE,” he said.
“Concussion protocols are important. Research is important. But there is nothing in this response that will prevent CTE from happening or that will help families manage with the years of care and support they will need to give.”
Dawn Astle, daughter of Jeff Astle, said its omission is “unforgivable”.
“It’s so very disappointing to see that this document does nothing to address the implications of the long-term damage caused by repeated head impacts in sport.
“For me, it shows a complete lack of respect to all those who have died completely stripped of all dignity and human nature and to all those who are living with the consequences of CTE and dementia now.
“I assumed this would be a real opportunity for the Government to push football to look after and support all those who are suffering and dying just because they played the game. I assumed incorrectly.”
While this crucial issue has not been addressed in the Government’s newly-published plan, its development of new protocols has been welcomed.
Unveiling a number of key points, the Government has committed to:
- Work with sports governing bodies, player associations and schools to commission a single set of shared protocols around concussion in sport across the UK
- The protocols will seek to include UK-wide agreement on issues such as how to recognise signs of head injury on and off the field, rules around removal from play and immediate actions to be taken in the event of head injuries
- Require sports governing bodies to work closely with player associations on training protocols to improve players’ long-term welfare
- Convene a sports concussion research forum in partnership with the Medical Research Council to bring together sports and academics to identify and fill gaps in research for the sector
- As part of the forum, the Government and sports concussion charity Love of the Game will also work to identify technology that could mitigate concussion in sport with practical improvements for players being introduced by autumn 2022
- Address lack of data on the subject by supporting a world-leading research project by the University of Oxford, in partnership with sport concussion charity Podium Analytics. This will be the first project of its kind to look at incidences of concussions in general and in sport in this country as well as prevalence by individual sports, age and gender
- Sports Minister Nigel Huddleston will write to UK Sport and Sport England to ensure funded bodies successfully implement the new protocols once developed
- Ministers will seek to convene a roundtable in the near future with tech companies to look at developing solutions to measure head impacts and aid player safety.
Dr Michael Grey, Trustee of the UK Acquired Brain Injury Forum (UKABIF), said: “We are pleased to see the Government agree with many of the recommendations in our Time for Change report.
“This is a step forward and we look forward to working with the Government to implement these actions on sport-related brain injury.
“The addition of the Medical Research Council will provide the transparency and oversight that has been lacking in research funded by the professional bodies.
“UKABIF will welcome the opportunity to contribute to the sports concussion research forum.”
Sports Minister Nigel Huddleston said: “Sport brings so many physical and mental health benefits to our lives. However, player safety must be absolutely paramount.
“Working with the sports industry it is right that we do all we can to ensure that people are as protected as possible and the risk of head injuries are minimised.
“That’s why we’re taking steps to reduce this risk and developing new, gold-standard industry protocols and focusing on emerging tech that can help build a fuller picture of the risks involved.”
Chief executive of Headway, Peter McCabe, said the response was a “little underwhelming” in terms of its urgency.
“Immediate action is required to build on the progress we’ve made to date – particularly at grassroots level where we need an evolution of attitude when it comes to head injuries in sport,” he said.
“For example, shared concussion protocols will help to reduce inconsistencies in the way head injuries are identified and dealt with in sport, but protocols are only of value if they are properly implemented and understood.
“The Government’s response does acknowledge that the development of protocols will not change behaviours on their own and we welcome its commitment to leading a campaign to ensure everyone involved in sport is concussion aware.
“But we also call on the Government to increase its scrutiny of governing bodies and act on its ability to hold organisations to account if meaningful change does not happen immediately.”
