Safer Churches

Safe Church Policy

Introduction: How This Toolkit Functions

When it comes to safeguarding our churches, the greatest resources to our congregations are all of you—who deeply care about the well-being and wholeness of persons who are most vulnerable. This toolkit is not intended to be exhaustive; instead, it's a tool that hopefully propels you to take actions toward cultivating places in which the value of each person is honored and people are free to worship and grow free from abuse—and where abuse has occurred, the response is compassion and justice that foster healing. More specifically, this toolkit is intended to

help you start the important work of policy formation.
share some basic important components of a policy.
share some key “go-to” places for further assistance.

A Vision for Why

Why Abuse Prevention/Safe Church Policies?

Not everyone gets excited about policies. However, forming a policy in your church can be one of the most loving things your community can do—especially if it prevents a community from experiencing the devastating effects of abuse. Having safe church policies (also called abuse prevention policies) in place shows that we value one another, especially children and others who are most vulnerable among us. Policies help to reduce risk and create a nurturing environment to worship and grow in faith while reducing the risk of abuse.

Further Reasons for Policies in our Churches

To reflect the high value that Jesus places on children. As his church, we reflect him by ensuring that honor and dignity are shown to every person created in his image.
To create opportunities to talk about abuse and increase awareness. Abuse thrives in silence and secrecy, and we must not let it thrive in our communities (Eph. 5).
To educate staff, leaders, and volunteers about abuse, the dynamics of power, and the responsibility it requires.
To respond effectively with justice and compassion to situations of abuse.
To practice due diligence while also satisfying possible requirements from insurance companies or legal counsel.

Let's Listen to Jesus

About that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?”

Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.

“And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me. But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea.”

—Matthew 18:1-6, NLT

Many parables and teachings of Jesus depict a contrast between people with different levels of resources and power. There is a consistent message throughout our redemption story that people who abuse their power are opposing the kingdom of God and the way things are supposed to be.

An abuse prevention policy is a safeguard for churches, helping to ensure the safety of every single person included in the wide body of Christ, all of whom are made in the very image of God. In addition, policies help us to honor and protect those who are most vulnerable among us, who are most at risk of being taken advantage of by people who misuse positional and spiritual authority. Children are seen as vulnerable because of their size and development. Adults too have various kinds of vulnerabilities—including disabilities, life situations, or cultural differences, to name a few.

Ezekiel 34 provides another scriptural picture about abuse. It shows God’s shepherds taking advantage of the sheep instead of protecting, feeding, and caring for them. Leaders in positions of authority use God’s people for their own appetites, pleasure, and gain. Yet another picture, from 2 Samuel 11, tells the story of Israel’s King David, who perpetrated sexual abuse in the rape of Bathsheba and who murdered her husband.

All of these stories, and many more, show that abuse is not easily excused—there are devastating effects, and the road to justice and mercy is long and difficult. The good news is that God continues to bring his kingdom to earth, where abuse will be no more, and true justice and mercy continue to flow from Jesus, our ultimate High Priest, King of kings, and true Prophet. We as his followers must do well to uphold the honor of any position of leadership, especially ordained positions in the church.

Getting Started

First Considerations of Developing a Policy

Fit Your Context: Although it is useful to consult examples from other congregations, do not use a policy that was not created for your church. Your policy must fit your individual church environment and programs, and it be must be something that all leaders, volunteers, and participants are able to follow. Take time to weigh the unique risks and benefits for your congregation.
Consult with Your Leaders: Each church program, ministry, or associated group should be represented and consulted while creating a policy. Creating a policy may take longer this way; however, there are worthwhile benefits gained through an engaging process. By having these extra viewpoints, you will have a good understanding of how these ministries function at the ground level and what risks or limitations they present.
Tips for Staying on Track While Developing Your Policy: Have your safe church team create a schedule or timeline that will provide some structure to maintain productivity as you work on your policy. Consider working on manageable chunks of the policy at a given time; it can be overwhelming to think about every last part of your policy. If you have many members who are assisting at the beginning stage, it may be beneficial to have one person put parts of the policy in writing to be considered by the team. This process may also be helpful for more tangible feedback, and collaborating by means of shared-document tools such as Google docs can be especially helpful. Also consider other methods that will allow your team members to use their strengths—for example, assigning different components of the policy to the attention of smaller groups that will then present back to the larger team. When you finally have a draft of your policy developed, you may wish to ask neighboring churches, or your classis safe church team, to provide feedback from a fresh perspective.
Seek Counsel: Policies should be reviewed by your church legal counsel and/or your insurance carrier. These representatives are sources of invaluable information and are trained to look for “worst-case scenarios” and ways to avoid them. In addition, they can make sure that policies are compliant with national, provincial or state, and local laws that apply to churches, which vary from place to place.
Post it! Consider posting your policy on your church website, and have copies of it in visible in easily accessible spaces in your building. This will let people know that you care about maintaining an abuse-free environment for everyone and will remind your congregation to be aware of your safe church/abuse prevention practices.

Philosophy

Why establish a child safety policy? What is the biblical foundation for the policy? How might this policy reflect our church’s vision? Who will benefit from this policy?

A safe church policy is not simply a document to fulfill the requirements of insurance. Safe church practices are followed by a covenant community to protect and ensure that the value of each person is honored, and to create an environment where people are free to worship and grow free from abuse. In addition, such policies help churches respond with compassion and justice to incidents of abuse, which can foster healing for individuals and the community.

To help start your policy development, we have made available other congregations’ examples of “Philosophy of Policy.” You can find numerous examples in our Appendix section. We encourage you to create a philosophy of why you have a policy that reflects your unique community.

Definitions of Abuse

What type of abuse does the policy address? Does your community have a common definition of abuse? How does the definition reflect various kinds of abuse? And how might the definition vary, depending on whether a child, youth, or vulnerable adult is involved?

When drafting a safe church policy, it is crucial to clearly define some important terms. Clear definitions will assist in identifying and preventing abuse.

Legal definitions for abuse vary from state to state and from province to province. We encourage each church to incorporate current legal definitions into its policy, including the age of legal consent. For information in the U.S., visit childwelfare.gov/topics. If you are looking for Canadian definitions and laws, you can start at the Canadian Welfare Research Portal.

While it is wise to outline your state’s definitions, you are not limited merely by them. We encourage churches to define all types of abuse in order to take steps toward prevention. The various types of abuse you may want to define could include sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, and spiritual abuse. It may also help to define the terms child, youth, and vulnerable adult.

It is important to note that at the core of every kind of abuse is an imbalance of power, in which the one who has the power takes advantage of the other. Power comes from various sources; we are not all on an equal playing field. Children are almost always under the power of someone else. Adults also may have various kinds of vulnerabilities, including mental and physical conditions. Inequalities may also be created by differing positions in the church, as well as by societal inequalities related to socioeconomic background, gender norms, or language barriers, etc. It’s important that we never minimize the authority that is vested in any leadership position in the church. Special consideration must be given to leadership and ordained positions in the church, including, but not limited to, minister of the Word, commissioned pastor, youth pastor, elder, deacon, and other ministry leaders. To learn more about power and control, become familiar with the Power and Control Wheel, used extensively by many to understand the dynamics of power in abuse situations.

Background Checks and Screening Leaders

What criteria will be followed to screen and select volunteers and staff? Is the process the same for all volunteers and church leadership? Who obtains and reviews the application/screening materials? Who approves the applications? After the screening process is completed, how are screening materials stored? When do periodic re-screenings need to happen?

One important component of abuse prevention is holding ministry leaders to high standards. Appropriate screening for staff, elders, deacons, ministry leaders, and volunteers is essential. Along with an application, an interview, and reference checks, a criminal background check should be part of the screening process, especially for leaders who work with children, youth, and vulnerable adult populations. Properly screening your leaders will require some effort, time, and money; but if you’ve ever dealt with the horrific impacts of abuse, you will understand that these efforts are worthwhile.

Each congregation must weigh the risks, benefits, and costs in determining which positions should require interviews, reference checks, and background checks. The resources from Brotherhood Mutual Insurance on Who to Screen may be helpful.

Once the screening procedures are outlined, decide how you will keep records of the screening materials. Make sure to re-screen your staff and volunteers on a regular basis, every 2 to 5 years, to ensure the safety of the congregation. Some limited background screening services are free for nonprofits—for example, the Michigan State Police offers ICHAT: a state-wide internet criminal history access tool. However, a state background check has limits; consider using that in conjunction with a national background check.

The following organizations have been successfully used by CRC congregations and ministries to help secure background checks:

Protect My Ministry is committed to helping faith-based organizations maintain a safe environment so that they can focus on fulfilling their mission. Protect My Ministry offers a process, products, and solutions that work for churches.

Plan to Protect prioritizes abuse prevention and vulnerable sector protection. Plan to Protect equips your team with effective and customized policies, procedures, and training.

ScreeningONE offers a comprehensive suite of screening solutions.

myBackCheck provides Canadians the opportunity to obtain background checks online and share them wherever they work or volunteer.

HireRight is a global agency for a very broad reach.

Training Volunteers and Leaders

How will this policy be implemented? What are the core elements of your policy that need to be taught regularly? How often will trainings take place? Who will be facilitating the trainings, and who will be required to attend?

Having an approved written policy is not enough. An annual “refresher” training is recommended for all leaders and volunteers, while it is recommended that those who are new to the policy be given a more specific orientation to the policies they are being asked to follow. There are so many ways to teach a policy to staff, leaders, volunteers, parents, and sometimes even kids or vulnerable adults themselves! Try integrating case scenarios or even “graded” quizzes into your trainings to pique the interest of your audience.

Preventative Policies for Leaders and Volunteers

General Policies

What ministries do the policies cover? What are expectations for the supervision of ministry leaders and volunteers? What will the church do to protect minors in its care? What are appropriate behaviors and boundaries between leaders and youth?

The general policy section of an abuse prevention policy tends to vary, depending on your community and the variety of ministries of your church. Protocols and expectations should be clearly understood by all staff, volunteers, parents, and participants. Some examples may include visibility requirements for each room or office on adult to child ratios. Best practices say that there should be at least two unrelated adults in any space where there are children or vulnerable people present. Many churches also include social media policies as well. In the age of digital and social media there are countless ways inappropriate interactions may happen. Abuse doesn’t happen in a vacuum, there is often a process that sets the stage for abuse to occur, known as grooming.

Discipline or Classroom Management Policies

What are acceptable and unacceptable forms of discipline? What are some tools for managing inappropriate behavior and lack of focus? Are there situations in which discipline crosses a line and becomes abusive?

The church community has the potential to provide the very best context for children to learn and grow. As humans, we all experience the effects of the fall into sin, and sometimes we mess up. This is especially true in the case of children, who learn from what they experience and are only just beginning to understand the difference between right and wrong. It can be helpful in an abuse prevention policy to outline the appropriate and inappropriate forms of discipline in the various children’s programs at your church.

Supervision Policies

How will your church hold volunteers and staff accountable for the way they conduct themselves and respond to situations? What situations have the highest risks? What additional steps must leaders take in special circumstances—for example, in the event of an overnight activity?

Each leader should have clear expectations about what is expected and who is holding them accountable.

This section of the abuse prevention policy can either be detailed or simple, depending on your church. Some churches find it important to lay out what is considered a high-risk situation versus a low-risk situation. The supervision policy can also include the numbers of adults that should be supervising the children and youth programs at the church. If your youth group participates in any sort of off-site or overnight activity, it is necessary to create specific guidelines for such events.

Transportation Policies

Are youth transported to and from church-sponsored events by volunteers and staff? If so, what precautions are taken to ensure safety? What state/provincial laws apply to this part of the policy?

High school youth groups are full of fun (and sometimes even wild) activities. However, crazy driving by youth group leaders should never happen. Driving is among the riskiest activities not only because of physical risks but also because of the potential for one-on-one situations.

For this section of the Safe Church policy, it is also important to look into any state or provincial laws that may apply specifically to transportation. You may want to check with your insurance carrier to see if they have recommended guidelines. For example, are there criteria that must be met for someone to be an approved driver for your youth programs?