Children and Youth Safety Policy
Westminster Presbyterian Church
Olympia, Washington
Westminster Presbyterian Church (WPC) is a Christian community that takes seriously its responsibility to provide a safe and nurturing environment for children and youth who participate in offered ministries. This policy statement covers the obligations of church employees and volunteers who work with children and/or youth. All employees and volunteers of WPC must comply with Parts I and II of the “Children and Youth Safety Policy,” and complete the appropriate application form(s) in Part III.
All are encouraged to participate fully in the lives of and ministry to children and youth. The church has an overriding obligation to safeguard all children and youth under its care from abuse and neglect. The following, (1) “Requirements of Employees and Volunteers in Children and Youth Ministries,” (2) “Children and Youth Safety Guidelines and Procedures,” and (3) “The Children and Youth Ministry Application Form(s),” reflect the commitment of WPC to provide a safe environment for all children, youth, employees, and volunteers who participate in any church-sponsored activity, program, or ministry.
For the purpose of this policy, “volunteers” are defined as those people who of their own free will offer to help lead activities or provide childcare for the children and youth who come under the care of WPC. The term “volunteers” shall include but not be limited to all volunteer teachers, drivers, chaperones, childcare providers, hall monitors, youth leaders, confirmation covenant partners and mentors who work with youth through the Mentoring Program.
In order to provide a safe community for children and youth, WPC requires that all employees and volunteers comply with parts I and II of the Children and Youth Safety Policy adopted by the Session. In doing so, all employees and volunteers will be asked to complete the appropriate forms (see section III) and attend the annual orientation meeting or meet with the appropriate staff person(s) to review the “Guidelines and Procedures” for working with children and youth. All employees and volunteers will be under the supervision of the appropriate staff persons and must clear the Washington State Patrol Background Check prior to beginning.
Any person who is currently under investigation for, or has been convicted of (1) criminal sexual misconduct, (2) neglect of a child, or (3) physical abuse, will not be permitted to work or volunteer in any church-sponsored activity or program involving children or youth. (See WAC 388-290-0160 which outlines convictions disqualifying a person from working with children and youth).
If the applicant discloses that charges were filed against that applicant but no conviction resulted, or discloses that he/she has been under investigation and the findings were unsubstantiated, the church designee will investigate and gather more information to present to the Safety Sub-committee for review and decision on whether the applicant poses too great a risk to the church’s children and youth programs.
The Pastoral and Program staff, along with the Christian Education Department and the Safety Sub-committee, shall review the Children and Youth Safety Policy and its implementation annually and report any changes made to the policy or the implementation of the policy to Session.
I. At no time shall one employee or volunteer be alone with one unrelated child or youth. The only exceptions to this policy are: (1) when contact occurs in a public place and others are in and out of the vicinity; or (2) when youth participating in the Mentoring Program have parental consent for a specific activity.
II. All employees and volunteers must read the Children and Youth Safety Policy, agree to it by completing and signing the appropriate form(s), and attend an annual orientation meeting or meet with the appropriate staff person to review the policy and procedures.
III. All first time volunteers, whether members or non-members, must be active participants in the life of the church for at least six months prior to volunteering their services to the children and youth ministries. They must read and sign The Children and Youth Safety Policy, provide names of three persons (non-family) who can give good reference to their character/background and they must attend the annual safety orientation meeting or meet with the appropriate staff person to review WPC’s guidelines for working with children and youth.
A. At no time shall one employee or volunteer be alone with one unrelated child or youth. See Part I (I), above.
B. To the extent practicable, each floor with children and youth classrooms shall have a hall monitor present during Sunday School hours.
C. To the extent practicable, employees and volunteers who work with children and youth shall work in pairs, with two or more adults present with children and youth at all activities. When not practicable activities must take place in a room where there is a window in the door and where others are in and out of the vicinity so that monitoring is possible.
D. Restroom use: Preschool age children will be accompanied to the restroom by a hall monitor or teacher who will wait at the door for the child. If the preschool age child needs assistance in the restroom, the hall monitor or teacher shall provide the assistance necessary, first encouraging the child to handle as much of the process as he/she can while the monitor/teacher waits at the door. Elementary school age children may choose a same gender “buddy” to accompany him/her to the bathroom. Restroom doors shall be propped open during Sunday mornings.
E. On Sunday mornings until the close of worship, the doors of all rooms in the Christian Education wing without hallway windows shall be either locked or blocked open. At these times, the first floor restrooms in the CE wing shall be used only by children, and the second floor restrooms shall be used only by adults, unless a parent or guardian and child are in the restroom together. Bathrooms on the sanctuary level are available to all.
F. If a situation arises that precludes compliance with this policy, then steps must be taken to ensure compliance. The following example is meant as illustration only and is not intended to preclude other solutions. Example: If only one teacher and one child or youth shows up for a Sunday School class, then the teacher and child or youth could join another class for the morning or the supervisor could join the teacher and child or youth.
G. If an employee or volunteer meets with a single child to conduct a private discussion, that meeting shall be held at WPC when the church is open for activities. See Part I (I), above.
H. Those who volunteer for special events or temporary service will be required to complete a Washington State Patrol background check and complete the Approval for Temporary Service Form, and obtain approval from the Director of Family Ministries or the Program Director. This person will work under the direct supervision of the assigned staff/volunteer.
I. Employees and volunteers must be at least five (5) years older than the oldest child in the youth program for unsupervised access to children and youth [e.g. Vacation Bible School (VBS) helpers, while not five (5) years older than the children in their groups, are under the supervision of adult VBS leaders].
J. A “sign-in, sign-out” form will be used for drop off and pick up of children in the nursery. A single sheet per room with separate columns for the child’s name, the parent’s “sign-in” signature and “sign-in” time, and the “sign-out” signature and “sign-out” time. The parents must sign the child in when leaving him/her in the room.
A. At no time shall one employee or volunteer be alone with one unrelated child or youth. See Part I (I), above.
B. As each facility will be different it will be the responsibility of the supervisors to determine how best to use the facility and comply with the Safety Policy.
C. Overnights: To the extent practicable males and females shall be segregated during sleeping time. If it is deemed necessary for adults to share sleeping accommodations with the children/youth, a minimum of two adults, the same sex as the children/youth to be chaperoned, shall sleep in each area.
D. All drivers and chaperones on children/youth off-site trips shall adhere to all parts of the Children and Youth Safety Policy.
E. All employees or volunteers are representing WPC and must adhere to the Children and Youth Safety Policy even when the children and youth are not a part of the WPC community.
A. Non-church sponsored groups/person using WPC’s facilities for activities with children or youth will be required to comply with this policy, including the requirements that: At no time shall one employee or volunteer be alone with one unrelated child or youth. See Part I (I) above.
B. At the time a contract is made with an outside group or person to use the church facility, it shall be the duty of the church office to obtain a written agreement from the outside group or person to comply with this policy. The person or a representative of the outside group will be required to sign a waiver that releases WPC from any liability. See Building Use Form item #6
A. It shall be the responsibility of the church Personnel Department to include a copy of the Children and Youth Safety Policy with/in the Employee Handbook for all newly hired employees.
B. The obligation to comply with and enforce this policy shall be written into the job description of each employee who has significant responsibility for supervising employees or volunteers who lead children or youth, e.g. the Director of Family Ministries, Youth Ministries Coordinator, Director of Music Ministries, Sunshine Preschool Director, Sunshine Preschool Teachers, Associate Pastor and Pastor Head of Staff.
A. Suspicious or inappropriate activity brought to the attention of an employee or volunteer must be reported immediately (within 24 hours) to the appropriate professional staff person.
B. The appropriate person(s) to whom to make this report to are:
1. Pastor/Head of Staff, the Associate Pastor or their designee.
2. Supervisor (s) responsible for the program, employee or volunteer.
C. The person making the report of the alleged abuse or receiving the report of suspicious activity shall then document the date, time and circumstances of the alleged incident. See Incident Report Form
D. The person receiving the initial report of suspicious activity will report immediately to the Pastor/Head of Staff or their designee, who will inform the church legal counsel and the church insurer.
E. The Pastor/Head of Staff, Associate Pastor, Director of Family Ministries, Youth Ministry Coordinator or individuals who may have children/youth supervisory responsibilities will determine whether further action will be taken.
F. All allegations shall be regarded as serious, and due consideration shall be given to the rights and privacy of all parties.
G. The person who is being accused will be required to refrain from participating in all children and youth activities until it is determined whether action shall be taken. Care shall be taken to handle this in a discreet manner.
H. After reviewing the reported circumstances, if the appropriate person receiving the report and the Pastor/Head of Staff determine that there is reasonable cause to suspect child abuse or neglect (as defined in WAC 388-290-0160 and Washington State Child Protection Law), then further action shall be taken as described in Section 7 entitled “Staff Response to Allegations of Abuse and Neglect.” The report must be made at the first opportunity, but in no case longer than 48 hours after there is reasonable cause to believe that the child has suffered abuse or neglect. The report must include the identity of the accused if known.
I. Even if the allegation is not sustained, the professional staff persons making the decision have the option to recommend another appropriate action, which could include removal from the program, review of the process in that program, and/or further education.
J. Nothing in this policy shall preclude any volunteer and/or employee from reporting directly to Child Protective Services.
If it is determined that there is reasonable cause to suspect child abuse or neglect, then the following steps will be taken:
A All allegations will be taken seriously and will be handled in a manner that is considerate and protective of all parties.
B A response team will be assigned to take further action. The response team will consist of: the Pastor/Head of Staff, the Associate Pastor, Director of Family Ministries, at least two (2) members of Session appointed by the Pastor/Head of staff, legal counsel and others as deemed appropriate (e.g. a mental health professional).
C The response team will promptly:
1. Ensure appropriate contact and cooperation with local and state civil and criminal authorities as required by law.
If appropriate under the law, under the guidance of the church legal counsel and insurance carrier, the response team may also:
2. Interview all appropriate persons.
3. If it will not put the child in jeopardy, contact the alleged victim’s parents.
4. Document all efforts to handle the situation, and maintain that documentation in a secure place. See Incident Report Form
5. Appoint a spokesperson, who will present a clear position statement of the church regarding child abuse that references this policy and established safeguards. This person will be the only person communicating to the press and authorities. The spokesperson will also give information to the congregation as appropriate.
6. The pastoral staff will provide appropriate counseling or referral to counseling.
A Only the children and youth professional staff will review forms completed by volunteers. The children and youth professional staff is defined as: Director of Family Ministries (DoFM), Youth Ministry Coordinator (YMC), Director of Music Ministries (DoMM) and an appointed church staff person.
B All information will be treated in a confidential manner. Except in the case of a response to a report of suspicious activity, only the appropriate professional staff shall have access to the information on these documents. In the case of a report of suspicious activity, the response team and the appropriate legal authorities will have access to the information.
C Volunteers will be required to complete a Children and Youth Volunteer Application form once every two years. In the interim years, each volunteer will be required to update his or her “Children and Youth Volunteer Form,” verifying that the information provided on the application is, still accurate and truthful. These forms shall be kept in a locked filing cabinet located in the DoFM and YMC office.
D All background checks will be given to the church office under confidential cover. Only appropriate church office staff members are authorized to perform the Washington State Patrol background check. When the WSP background check is completed a copy of it will be mailed to the individual employee or volunteer and a copy maintained in a locked file cabinet located in the Director of Family Ministries office (for volunteers) or, in the employee’s personnel file located in a locked file cabinet located in the Pastor/Head of Staff office.
E If a background check has a “hit” the church office staff will notify the supervisor(s)/personnel for the employee or the Director of Family Ministries or Youth Ministry Coordinator for volunteers. A decision as to whether or not this person should be hired or allowed to volunteer will be determined by the Supervisor (s) and/or Personnel Department.
F A list of all persons who have had a background check will be placed in the front of the locked file cabinet for easy access. The date of the last background check will accompany each person’s name.
G Documentation/proof of training participation will be placed in each employee’s personnel file and in the volunteer filing cabinet upon completion of the training by the volunteer/employee.
H The Personnel Department along with supervisors/Head of Staff will be responsible for making sure that all employee/staff background checks/safety training are completed and filed in the pastor’s office. Each file will be audited annually by personnel staff.
I The Director of Family Ministries and the Youth Ministry Coordinator will be responsible for filing the children and youth volunteer’s background checks/references and documentation of training in the locked file cabinet in DoFM/YMC office. The files are to be audited annually by DoFM and YMC.
J Employment and volunteering is contingent upon the result of the screening process. See Part II (VIII)
The following items will be included in the screening process for all who work with children and youth:
A. Consent forms for release of information (criminal background checks, reference information from prior employer (s))
B. Background check repeated every two years.
C. Identification (SSN, copy of driver’s license, date of birth)
D. Aliases and former names
E. Home and work addresses
F. References (non-family, employer/supervisors)
G. Consent to verify application materials including contacting references
H. Waiver of liability against the church for any matters related to the screening process and any subsequent action taken pursuant to this policy.
I. Dated signature of applicant certifying that the information provided is true and correct
J. Validation of vehicle insurance.
K. Employment/Volunteer Application
A. Washington State Patrol Background Check
B. Children and Youth Volunteer Application
C. Volunteer Driver Information Form
D. Acknowledgement of receipt of Safety Policy Form
E. Approval for Temporary Service Form
F. Documentation of Incident Form
G. Building Use/Wavier Form by non-church group/persons
H. Covenant Statement