St. George's Church considers our children our most precious resource
and our most sacred charge. With this in mind, we have adopted the
standards set forth by the Diocese for Safe Church for those who
work with our children and youth. The implementation of the Safe
Church policy assures the safety of any children and youth involved
with the nursery, children's and youth education, and those children
and youth attending off-site events. The full policy is very detailed
and is available in the church office. Below is an outline that
simplifies the policy.
| Length of time person needs to be attending
church before working alone with children or youth: |
6 months |
| Background check for volunteer nursery
supervisor: |
Full background check i.e. Bureau of
Criminal Apprehension, references & personal interview (if
something questionable on application or references/background
check |
| Background check for supervised volunteers
in nursery: |
Full background check as explained above |
| Background check for volunteer Sunday
School teachers (grades 5 and under): |
Full background check as explained above |
| Background check for volunteers working
with youth (grade 6 & up): |
Full background check as explained above |
| Background check for youth serving as
volunteers: |
Same as for adults and parents must approve |
| Background check for a person who substitutes
at the last minute working with the nursery or youth on a one
time or occasional basis under supervisory control: |
None |
| Minimum # of references required for supervised
nursery volunteers and Sunday School volunteers: |
2-personal or work related |
| Minimum # of references required for nursery
supervisor and volunteers working with youth: |
4: 2 personal & 2 business/school/volunteer |
| # of people required in nursery: |
One paid staff & one volunteer |
| # of teachers required in Sunday School
class: |
2 suggested & 1 required (door must
be open if only one) |
| Policy if there is only one student and
one teacher on a given Sunday: |
They must go in with another class |
| # of teachers required in Youth Class |
2 suggested & 1 required (door must
be open if only one) |
| Policy if there is only one student and
one teacher on a given Sunday: |
For grades 8 & below, they must go
in with another class. For grads 9 & up, the teacher decides
whether to meet with the student or cancel class. If the teacher
meets alone with one student, this must be documented and a
copy given to the Safe Church Recordkeeper. |
| When volunteer can start working in the
position: |
Once application has been completed (unless
a youth overnight or off-site event), but volunteer may not
work alone with children/youth until acceptable references and
background check have been received. |
| Training requirements: |
4 hours (child sexual abuse prevention
session) for volunteers who supervise nursery or youth activities. |
