The Baltimore-Washington Conference is committed to ensuring that all children and youth involved in conference ministries may participate in an environment of safety and security. To that end, the conference has provided the attached packet of information and forms. All churches shall follow these procedures to protect the children and youth in their care. Click on the following to download a packet for your church:
Safe Children and Youth Procedures and Forms
Sexual Misconduct Questionnaire
FAQ’s for Safe Sanctuary Recommendations Baltimore-Washington Conference
Spring, 2007
I thought churches were already required to have a safe sanctuaries policy. Why are we acting on this now?
The annual conference has acted several times in the past 15 years to implement policy intended to protect children and youth in the care of our local churches. Together we enacted the sexual misconduct questionnaire and reporting system and also passed a recommendation more recently that applies to youth who help to care for children. There were several training events where some excellent advice was offered in how to work in ways that protect children, youth, and even adults (e.g., all rooms should be equipped with windows so that no one can hide what they are doing). However, none of that advice was put in the form of legislation. It was advice. The policies that we have been operating under do 3 things:
- requires everyone who works with children or youth to file a Sexual Misconduct Questionnaire annually;
- requires that the pastor and SPRC certify at charge conference that all volunteers and paid staff (including the pastors) have complied with the requirement;
- requires that youth working with adult supervision complete a covenant and that the local church provide training for them in the church’s procedures for keeping children safe.
These policies can be found in the Baltimore-Washington Conference Policy Manual beginning on page 2-43. The policy manual includes a covenant for youth aides. None of the policies spelled out what the procedures must be nor required any specific local church policy. The current recommendation changes that.
What does the new recommendation require?
The new recommendation requires that every local church use the book Safe Sanctuaries: Reducing the Risk of Child Abuse in the Church by Joy Thornburg Melton (Discipleship Resources, ISBN: 0-88177-220-8) as a guide to develop a policy and implement procedures. It is strongly recommended that you begin with the children’s manual. There is a manual for workers with youth as well, and it is very helpful: Safe Sanctuaries for Youth: Reducing the Risk of Abuse in Youth Ministries, Joy Thornburg Melton (Discipleship Resources, ISBN: 0-88177-404-9. The children’s book is very thorough and leads you through the basics which apply to all children and youth. This book will guide you through the process and help you ask and answer the right questions. Each local church needs to do this so that they can agree on exactly what they will do and everyone will understand and abide by the decisions. The annual conference will not dictate what the policy should be nor what the procedures will be.
Will this apply to everyone who works with children and youth?
The short answer is YES. All volunteer and paid staff of Sunday School, youth groups, nursery care or any other program should be included. Use the Safe Sanctuaries manual to help you discern exactly what this means for your situation.
Will this new requirement replace the Sexual Misconduct Questionnaire (SMQ)?
No. The SMQ is still a requirement and reporting in that manner will not change.
Does everyone have to have a background check?
Again, use the manual as your guide to answer this question. You should check with your church’s insurance carrier to determine whether you are required to do this to keep your coverage in force. Some carriers are now requiring this step. It is not normally necessary, however, for you to use the State Police or FBI background check system.
The website http://www.churchvolunteercentral.com/backgroundshopguide.asp is much faster, much less expensive, and flexible to fit your needs. For example, if you have someone who will be driving youth to an event, you may choose to do a driving record check (a separate check with a separate fee). You would not need to do that for everyone. Please note that if you have a licensed program of any kind, the State, County or District probably requires all staff to obtain a background check through the State Police or FBI process, and this is non-negotiable. ALL programs such as nursery school, preschool, day care, before-and-after-school care, and many camp programs (even if they are held in your local church) are required to be licensed.
How much will this cost?
If you decide that background checks are necessary or desirable, the cost will vary. A simple background check through Volunteer Central is approximately $12 per person. There is a sampling of the types of checks available through Church Volunteer Central at the website mentioned above.
Are there resources available to help us in training our volunteers and other staff?
Yes. There are videos and dvd’s available from the annual conference’s resource center, and the Safe Sanctuaries manual has an excellent resource list. In addition, members of the Baltimore-Washington Conference Commission on the Status and Role of Women have been trained and are available to help you in this process. For this kind of help, call the Rev. Iris Farabee-Lewis at 410-233-0020.
What is the timeline for development and implementation?
Every local church should report the following to the 2007 charge conference: 1) who will serve on the task force that will develop the policy and procedures and 2) provide a preliminary timeline and plan for completion. At the 2008 charge conference, every local church will be required to submit their safe sanctuaries plan.
