Introduction
Ministry to young people is vibrant and exciting work, and also greatly significant to the life of the church. Teaching young people about Jesus is kingdom work. It is a service to the young people, the church family, and to God himself that offers great opportunities, but also carries significant responsibilities for the wellbeing of the young people in our care. If we as church members and leaders take the teaching and leadership of young people seriously then we must provide an environment that is safe from any form of harm.
This booklet sets out the guidelines and Code of Conduct for leaders involved in youth ministry, whether paid or unpaid. This includes youth group leaders, youth camp leaders and so on.
For the purposes of this booklet, youth ministry refers to ministry to high school students, or otherwise teenagers under the age of 18. There is a separate booklet for leaders engaged in ministry to children up to and including Year 6.
Contents
General principles for ministry with young people
- The role of the youth ministry leader
- Screening and training of leaders
- Code of Conduct
- Guidelines for Youth Ministry activity
- Reporting abuse
- Contact details
General principles for ministry with young people
Young people have rights
Young people have the right to be safe and well looked after when they are in our care. They have the right to be protected, listened to and their particular needs addressed in all church activities, whether mixed age or young-person specific.
Leaders are responsible
All those exercising a pastoral ministry involving young people in the church have responsibility for the safety and welfare of the young people in their care.
Abuse is power misused
Leaders have authority over young people because of their positional power and because of their greater age, maturity, physical size and life experience. Abuse arises from the misuse of authority or power. Any form of abuse is always wrong.
The role of the youth ministry leader
It is your role to take reasonable steps to ensure the safety and welfare of the young people in your care.
This will involve:
- ensuring that you satisfy the screening and training requirements; and
- complying with the Code of Conduct and guidelines contained in this booklet.
Screening and training of leaders
Sadly, many young people have been abused physically, sexually and emotionally by trusted members of their communities, including people in churches. As a result, there are requirements for people involved in any kind of work with youth and children that we as leaders must comply with, both under NSW law and the Anglican Church’s ordinances.
Legal requirements
Any person involved in child-related work (including all volunteers) must get a Working With Children Check (WWCC) clearance (subject to some exemptions). A child is defined as a person under the age of 18 years and therefore “child-related work” includes youth ministry activities.
Your church must verify the WWCC number with the Office of the Children’s Guardian to determine whether the person has been cleared or barred.
Diocesan requirements
A person who wishes to volunteer or work in a children’s ministry position must usually:
- Obtain a WWCC clearance that must then be verified by the parish;
- Make a formal application for the children’s ministry position, including producing proof of identity documents and providing references (www.safeministry.org.au/);
- Undertake Safe Ministry training within three months of starting the children’s ministry position, followed by a Refresher course every three years; and
- Read, understand, and comply with Faithfulness in Service.
In addition, it is recommended that all volunteers are a member of a parish for at least 6 months before entering into a children’s ministry position in that parish.
A “children’s ministry position” means any paid or unpaid position to which a person is appointed by or on behalf of the minister or the wardens that involves activities primarily related to, and physical or face-to-face contact with, children. Examples include youth group leaders, youth camp leaders, etc.
The Diocese uses the phrase “children’s ministry position” to cover both children’s and youth ministry positions. When you see the term “children’s ministry position” used in this document, it includes youth ministry positions.
In our parish system, the Senior Minister has the ultimate responsibility for appointing people to children’s ministry positions, even though in practice that responsibility is often delegated to other leaders.
Providing information for records
You must provide your full name, date of birth, WWCC number and details of the Safe Ministry training you have undertaken to your parish’s Safe Ministry Representative, as they are required to keep these records.
Youth Ministry Code of Conduct
This Code of Conduct is written to protect both the youth in our churches, and you as a leader from situations where your integrity or actions might be questioned.
In the exercise of your ministry you must:
- Never abuse young people or cultivate relationships in order to initiate or cloak abuse of young people.
- Never become romantically involved with any young person participating in the youth ministry (Years 7-12 or otherwise under the age of 18).
- Never be alone with a young person away from the presence of other adults.
- Never have young people to your home or visit young people in their home when no other adult is present, except with the permission of a parent or guardian.
- Never touch a young person in a manner which is inappropriate given their age, gender or cultural background.
- Never physically discipline a young person.
- Never make drugs, alcohol or cigarettes available to young people.
- Never develop inappropriate special relationships with particular young people that could be seen as involving favouritism or any form of special treatment.
- Never engage in any contact with a young person that is secretive (whether physical or through electronic media or in any other way).
There are good reasons for this code of conduct. Those who seek to abuse children may use group-based activities in order to gain the trust of a young person. Having gained that trust, they may then engage in one-to-one activities that offer an opportunity for abuse to occur, including sexual abuse.
Sexual abuse of a young person often starts with something relatively minor, but can then gradually build up to more involved behaviors through a process of grooming. It is often characterized by secrecy.
Those at greatest risk of child abuse in ministry are undoubtedly teenagers. This is because youth ministry more easily allows for the possibility of one-to-one unsupervised contact. This is why there must always be more than one adult leader present, and that no opportunities present themselves for a leader to engage in one-to-one activity with a young person away from the presence of other adults.
A breach of this Code of Conduct may raise issues concerning your fitness to continue as a leader.
You are to inform the person responsible for Youth Ministry in your parish, or the Senior Minister or the Safe Ministry Representative if you observe another leader acting in a way that may be contrary to this code of conduct.
Guidelines for Youth Ministry Activities
The guidelines that follow cover a wide array of issues for youth ministry activities, such as the supervision of activities and their appropriateness, the physical safety of the those involved, the importance of parental consent, transportation and trips away, forms of communication with young people, as well the issue of meeting up with young people outside of programmed events. However, there are three golden rules that are relevant to all of the guidelines.
The Golden Rules
Two or More
There must always be two leaders aged 18 years or over present for all youth ministry events.
Never Alone
Leaders must not be alone with a young person, and should make sure, as far as possible, that other leaders are not left alone with a young person.
Stranger Danger
Leaders should be on the alert for people wandering around – a person unknown to the leaders or not part of the youth ministry should not be allowed access to young people.
a. Physical safety of young people
One of the ways that we can protect young people in our churches is to make sure that they are meeting in a physical environment that is appropriate and safe for them.
Consider particularly the suitability of the space, the safety of the space, and the safety measures in place by asking the following questions. Ideally it is preferable if you are objectively able to tick all the following boxes ‘yes’.
Suitability of the space
- Are toilet facilities available?
- Is the space appropriate for activities such as games?
- Is the equipment being used suitable and appropriate for the ages using it?
- Is the floor non-slip and splinter-free?
Safety of the space
- Is the area to be used a safe distance from roads or traffic?
- Is the area far removed from places where people may engage in unsafe behaviour (such as smoking or drinking alcohol)?
- Is any glass installed at floor level safety glass?
- Is the heating safe to use?
- Are all electrical wiring, sockets and appliances regularly maintained and in a safe condition?
- In regard to areas that may be used for games and outside play, has the area been checked for items that may pose a potential hazard and such items safely removed (such as broken glass, or discarded needles)?
- Is all furniture in a safe condition and without risk of toppling onto a child (such as stacks of chairs)?
First aid and safety measures
- Is there a fire extinguisher and fire blanket accessible and available on-site?
- Is there a well-stocked first aid kit at the activity site?
- Is there a specific person in the church who is responsible for checking the first aid kit regularly and replenishing it?
- Is there a specific person on-site who is trained in first aid?
- Are all leaders aware of the fire safety and evacuation procedures?
b. Supervision of activities
An important part of providing a safe environment is making sure you have enough leaders present to adequately supervise the activities taking place.
The degree of supervision required will vary according to the nature and environment of the activity, the age and maturity of the young people and the size of the group. In considering the number of leaders required, take into account:
- the age, number, ability and gender mix of the youth; and
- the venue, time, duration and nature of the activity.
- The suggested supervision ratio for low risk onsite events with youth would be 1:10 (one leader for every 10 youth), after the minimum requirement of 2 adult leaders is met.
Where the risks in the activity increase, the supervision should also increase. For example, if you were to take the Year 7 and 8 youth off-site to do indoor rock climbing, it would be appropriate to reduce the ratio to 1:6 (one leader for every 6 youth). This is to account for the high-risk nature of the activity and the fact that it is off-site.
c. Appropriateness of activities
You should thoughtfully consider what message young people may learn from the way events are organised and conducted. Games or activities that could in any way emphasise gender, physical, intellectual or ethnic differences should be assessed for their appropriateness.
To minimise the possibility of youth being harmed, you should give careful consideration to any activities or games that require young people to act alone or in pairs independent of leaders.
You should review in their entirety any DVDs, youtube clips, computer games, graphics, photographs and lyrics that you intend to show young people. You should also make sure that any elements containing violence, sexual activity, nudity, drug use, coarse language or questionable lifestyle are appropriate for the intended audience. In assessing whether something is appropriate you should be governed by the age of the youngest person present. Exercise particular care if a TV show, film or computer game has been recommended by the Office of Film and Literature Classification as unsuitable for youth of a particular age (eg, PG, M or MA classifications). MA rated material will rarely be suitable, and material rated M may or may not be suitable with parental consent. If in doubt, seek the advice of a supervisor or colleague.
d. Parental consent
You must have the written consent of a parent or guardian before taking youth away from church premises, and you must keep them informed of the place and timing of the event. If you can, include parents or guardians in the leadership team.
Ask parents or guardians for information about any particular physical needs (eg, allergies), mental health needs (eg, depression) or safety needs of youth in your care.
And never administer medications to a young person without the written consent of a parent or guardian.
e. Transportation
It is the responsibility of parents and guardians to arrange transportation to and from youth events for their child, unless another specific arrangement is in place.
You must have written permission from a parent or guardian before a young person can be driven anywhere by someone other than the parent for the purposes of a church activity.
When making transport arrangements, take reasonable steps to ensure that:
All drivers or operators are licensed (green Ps or above), responsible, experienced, and are not impaired by alcohol or any other mind-altering or addictive substance; and
All motor vehicles and other forms of transport used are registered, insured, safe, and fitted with age appropriate restraints or safety devices (e.g. seat belts, life jackets).
Leaders should avoid being alone with a young person in a motor vehicle or driving a young person home unaccompanied, even with parental permission. If such a situation is unavoidable, inform another leader of the trip and the reason for it.
