BHA to start using Professional STEWARDS

Professionals to the fore in stewarding shake-up as BHA battles corruption

There has been a shake-up to the stewarding panel

By Tony McFadden
UPDATED 1:58PM, AUG 29 2018

Revolutionary changes to raceday officiating were revealed by the BHA on Wednesday, with professionals taking a more prominent role in the stewarding panel as the sport's regulator bids to safeguard against corruption.

In changes that will come fully into effect in early 2019, the raceday panel will consist of two BHA employees – with one acting as a chief steward – and one volunteer acting as the stewards' panel chair. Currently the panel comprises two volunteers and one stipendiary steward.

The chief steward will be the most senior official and have overall control of raceday functions.

Brant Dunshea, chief regulatory officer for the BHA, said: "We face a number of challenges. Not only are we facing increased competition from other sports for support, publicity, sponsorship and investment, we are also at continuous risk from unscrupulous interests who seek to exploit and corrupt the sport for financial gain.

"The framework of raceday regulation currently in place in Britain has served us well.
However, to ensure that racing is best positioned to mitigate and manage the risks posed by contemporary integrity threats to so many sports, it’s essential that we continue to evolve and improve our regulatory systems.

"We believe that the new officiating model retains the best elements of the current model, while raising the bar on integrity, welfare and the management of risk and major incidents. We expect this to bring together all our raceday teams, including our volunteer and professional stewards and other officials, into a more coherent, supportive, consistent, flexible and effective operation."

What is the role of the chief steward?
This will be a professional BHA employee with overall control of raceday functions, providing clear accountability and an escalation point for raceday decisions.

What is the role of the stewards' panel chair?
This will be a volunteer with responsibility for chairing stewards' inquiries and ensuring procedural fairness.

These changes are the result of a consultation process and review of the sport’s stewarding model which commenced in 2017. A strong sentiment was expressed from the sport's stakeholders that change was required.

The cost of these changes, which require recruiting and retraining, is expected to be £330,000 a year.

Andrew Merriam, independent regulatory director on the BHA board, said: "The BHA board is confident that the chosen approach will make the sport better placed to tackle risk and ensure the confidence of the sport’s fans, followers, investors and participants and ensure that we continue to retain our status as a treasured British institution."