Make Your Own Code of Conduct
Your Code of Conduct will provide your staff, volunteers, and others responsible for children and youth with very specific guidelines that will…
Home / Policies & Procedures / What’s in a Child Protection Policy?
Policies for youth-serving organizations in Massachusetts should clearly identify the duties and responsibilities of all staff, reflect both Federal and Massachusetts abuse reporting laws, provide direction to employees, staff, and volunteers who wish to make a report, and define the internal mechanisms to be followed when a case of child abuse or neglect is suspected or being reported. When a crisis occurs, a clearly defined and recognized set of policies and procedures will make the process of reporting go more smoothly, thus helping to reduce the anxiety, any confusion, and reluctance of staff, and protecting children/youth more effectively.
Here’s a list of values that should guide the creation of your child protection policy.
With those values in mind, an effective set of abuse policies for youth-serving organizations should:
Introduce child protection organizational values and Policies and Procedures with all new staff upon hire as part of staff orientation, and review and update this information with all staff on an annual basis.
Code of Conduct
Your Code of Conduct will provide your staff, volunteers, and others responsible for children and youth with very specific guidelines that will…
Training
Parents and other caregivers need to receive, at a minimum, the same level of prevention education as their child/youth. Parents can be strong…
Screening & Hiring
Additional screening and hiring measures should be implemented based on the specific needs, responsibilities, and risks of your Youth-Serving…
Safe Environments
Physically safe spaces, with proper supervision, are required to maintain safety standards at your Youth-Serving Organization (YSO). Ensure policies…
Code of Conduct
Once your Code of Conduct is in place, it’s important to implement it through training and by disseminating the information widely, in a variety…
Screening & Hiring
State and federal laws and regulations require specific types of screening and background checks—particularly criminal and sexual offense records…
Reporting
Visit the website, Massachusetts Department of Children & Families Locations to find contact information for your local office and see…
Monitoring Behavior
Develop a culture of child safety at your Youth-Serving Organization (YSO) using your Monitoring Behavior protocol that includes leadership-driven…
Screening & Hiring
A personal interview provides an opportunity for you to meet applicants and determine if they are a good fit for your organization. It’s also a …
Training
A Model for Evaluation: Kirkpatrick’s Four Levels of Training Every training course needs a method of collecting feedback to ensure a course is…
Customized child sexual abuse prevention guidelines to meet the unique needs of any organization that serves children.
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