This policy is called the Parish Safety Policy.
Introduction:
The Anglican Diocese of Newcastle is committed to ensuring that all people who participate in our programs and ministries have a safe and rewarding experience.
The focus of this policy is on the safety of children and vulnerable people.
Policy:
In ensuring the safety and wellbeing of children, the Diocese will –
- communicate its commitment to the safety of children and vulnerable people;
- carefully recruit and train its clergy and church workers,
- adopt and encourage safe ministry practices by its clergy and church workers,
- ensure that children, young people, clergy, church workers, staff, volunteers and parishioners are supported and respected,
- respond promptly and in a trauma informed manner to each concern raised about the behaviour of its clergy and church workers,
- provide supervision and pastoral accountability (within the context of the ministries, locations and activities of the parish) of any person (who is a member of a congregation and) who is known to have abused a child or another vulnerable person,
- promote children’s participation in our parishes and Diocese and make it safer for them,
- ensure effective governance around safety, and
- comply with legislation relating to protecting children.
Key Definitions:
Whenever we speak about children, we mean every person under the age of 18.
Whenever we speak about vulnerable people we mean persons with a cognitive impairment including an intellectual disability, a developmental disorder (including an autistic spectrum disorder), a neurological disorder, dementia, a severe mental illness, or a brain injury. We also mean a person who through life circumstances such as a significant grief or loss requires increased support in daily life. We also mean people experiencing family or domestic violence.
Scope:
This Policy applies to all parishes associated with the Diocese of Newcastle and applies to:
- all clergy and church workers whether paid or voluntary and includes Board, Council and committee members;
- as specified herein,
- guests or hirers of the church and its facilities
- contractors, subcontractors, delivery persons or others engaged to provide services; and
- those who access our site and/or programs.
This policy (together with the frameworks and guides) has been adopted as a Work Health and Safety Policy of the Diocese consequently clergy are required to observe it as a condition of any licence or authority (s 13 of the Clerical Ministry Ordinance 2009) and must be observed by parish officers, church workers and other ministers (s 93 of the Administration of Parishes Ordinance 2010).
Availability of the Policy and key components
The Policy and its components will be maintained on the Diocesan Website.
Parishes are to ensure a link to the Policy and its components can be easily found on their parish website.
At least once each year the link to the Policy and its components will be communicated to people involved in parish programmes with children and vulnerable people as staff, volunteers, parents/care-givers, and participants.
The key components of the Safety Policy can be accessed below
- Adult Commitment to the Safety of Children
- Code of Conduct for all people involved in church – Being Together
- Code of Conduct for clergy and church workers – Standards for Clergy and Church Workers
- Code of Conduct (Model) for governing bodies – Model-Code-of-Conduct
- Communication
- Complaints
- Confessions
- Culture
- Governance for safety
- Grievance Protocol
- Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse
- Minimum Guidelines for Ministry with Children
- National Register
- Quality Assurance
- Recruitment of clergy and church workers (paid and voluntary)
- Review of Parish Safety Policy
- Roles and Responsibilities for ensuring Safe Ministry
- Screening and Ministry Clearance Requirements
- Supervising Persons of Concern
- Supporting clergy, church workers, staff, volunteers, contractors and parishioners
- Supporting Participation by children and vulnerable people
- Training
- Working with children check
Page updated 21 July 2020