Why Churches Should Have A Child Safety Policy
One of the marks of a truly Safe Church is that it has a written policy in place to prevent any kind of abuse from occurring at church or at church sponsored programs. These policies are designed to protect the most vulnerable people, such as children and youth, and also the most vulnerable situations, such as one-one one interactions.
In some places, insurance companies have been a driving force behind the development of protection policies; a church may have a difficult time getting any insurance coverage without such a policy in place. That is because legal settlements in cases of abuse are becoming more common and can be very large. Currently 605 out of 1069 CRC churches have some kind of abuse prevention policy, and that number is growing.
Safe Church Team members and the office of Safe Church Ministry often field questions from churches that are creating or updating their policies. We love these questions; they are a positive sign that churches are considering this important issue. One common question is this:
Question
We have had legal counsel recommend that we not implement a formal, written policy about child safety. Yet, Safe Church Ministry recommends the opposite – that every church have a Child Safety Policy. Why the discrepancy?
Answer
It is true that no policy is a better option than a bad policy. If there is a policy on the books that is too cumbersome to be followed, for instance, it can work against a church. A church is responsible to follow its policy, and if, in an abuse situation, the adopted policy has not been followed, that church will fare worse in a possible lawsuit than a church who pleads ignorance because there is no policy.
Having said that, every church is responsible before God to do everything in its power to enhance safety for its children and vulnerable adults. When a church develops a policy, therefore, it is important that the church not simply adopt a ready-made policy, but that a committee work together to create a policy that fits the church.
The committee should be comprised of professionals within the social work, police, child advocacy, and/or social policy fields, as well as people who represent the different programs in the church, and a representative of the church Council. The committee will need to spend some time researching what is “out there” and developing a policy that fits the particular church community. It is crucial that such a policy be enforceable. It should be adopted by the Council as well as the congregation, and be taught yearly and signed onto by all the relevant ministry leaders of the church.
Safety can never be guaranteed, but it can certainly be enhanced. A clear, concise, and enforceable abuse prevention and response policy goes a long way towards that goal.
Resources and help for creating a policy for your church can be found on the Safe Church Website www.crcna.org/safechurch or by contacting your Safe Church team representative or the office of Safe Church Ministry.
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The legalistic rationale behind "better not to have a policy to to have one not followed" originates from the fact that having any type of "risk-prevention" policy is prima facie evidence that you know the risk is there. Why else would you have a policy? So, if sued, you would have lost the defence of "I wasn't aware of the risk". It's like being unaware of the sidewalk ice that somebody slipped on vs. knowing it was there but not doing anything about it. The 2nd scenario finds you "more" liable (you should have done something about it).
As regards the risk of sexual abuse, it is automatically assumed by the Courts (at least in Canada) that ALL organizations are aware of the risk and thus the directors/officers/council members are automatically ASSUMED to be aware of the risk (regardless of whether there's a policy in place). You can't plead ignorance by saying you were unaware of the risk. And, if you're deemed to be aware of the risk, you are charge with taking reasonable steps to prevent injury arising from the risk and that means adopting and properly implementing a vaiid Safe Church Policy. Understand your policy and insist on compliance.
That was the lawyer in me... sorry. The Christian in me agrees wholeheartedly with Judy's comment. "EVERY CHURCH IS RESPONSIBLE BEFORE GOD TO DO EVERTYING IN ITS POWER TO ENHANCE SAFET FOR ITS CHILDREN AND VULNERABLE ADULTS". I If your church council believes that can be accomplished without a policy, your council needs immediate "educational" help and, down the road, will likely need highly competent legal help (the cost of which, in the absence of a valid policy, will likley not be borne by your church's insurer)