How to Implement a Screening Policy
Start with Basic Screening It is very important that all applicants who provide direct services and who are seeking positions of trust—either…
Home / Safe Environments / What are Safe Environments?
Ensuring a safe environment for children includes targeting the five major areas of safety: visibility, access, supervision and communication, transportation, and safe technology use.
At minimum, your Safe Environment must include:
Adapting the physical space to create clear sightlines, where all areas are observable, unused areas are secured, and safety rules are posted publicly. Design or modify spaces to ensure children can be seen at all times. Unused spaces should be locked, secured, and monitored. Signage should direct children and others away from those areas.
Procedures are in place to control and monitor access, and all individuals entering the site are identified and verified. Visitor policies should be implemented to ensure the safety of children both on and off site. Access to the site should be restricted to those affiliated with the YSO and whose identify has been verified. Additional policies will need to be in place to protect children during off-site or overnight activities.
A clear understanding by all staff and volunteers about who is responsible for each child at all times. The YSO should follow appropriate staff-to-child ratios to ensure all children are monitored properly. All entry and release procedures must be followed, and children should be signed in and out by a authorized adult.
Continuous enforcement of Your Code of Conduct. Refer to your Code of Conduct often to ensure child safety. Ensure all one-on-one interactions at your YSO are observable and can be monitored or interrupted.
Procedures to ensure safe use of bathroom, changing, and showering facilities (if applicable) are adopted and followed. Maintain clear guidelines and expectations for staff or volunteers that have access to bathrooms, showers, and changing facilities. Clearly define and discuss procedures for children needing assistance in any of these facilities.
Your YSO should develop and maintain safe physical spaces with a clear line of sight for children. Certify that staff, volunteers, and others granted access to the site understand their responsibilities related to child safety. Policies should be put in place to guide staff and volunteer interactions with children on and off-site.
Screening & Hiring
Start with Basic Screening It is very important that all applicants who provide direct services and who are seeking positions of trust—either…
Screening & Hiring
Finding and retaining a qualified and diverse workforce is one of the greatest challenges for youth-serving organizations like yours. Given the…
Reporting
Thinking of children or youth as capable of sexually abusing other children or youth can be difficult to consider and challenging to address. In…
Safe Environments
Along with site safety, visibility issues, physical access, and security procedures, supervision is a critical aspect of creating and maintaining…
Monitoring Behavior
Your Youth-Serving Organization (YSO) should develop a protocol to keep staff and volunteers accountable for their behaviors. Identify the…
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…
Sustainability
Community interaction and involvement is important in maintaining a culture of safety surrounding your Youth-Serving Organization (YSO). In order to…
Safe Environments
Safe Environment Strategies: Visibility Whether or not you can control the design of your space, physical safety depends on your ability to…
Reporting
Sometimes, a child/youth might self-disclose an abusive situation to an adult in your organization. These disclosures can be direct, where the child…
Safe Environments
In the past, youth-serving organizations needed to worry about safety only within the physical environment—the building(s) where their services…
Customized child sexual abuse prevention guidelines to meet the unique needs of any organization that serves children.
Learning Center Registration
Sign up for an account and start your learning experience.
Free Online Assessment
Let us help you find out where to start.