We want to reflect Jesus' concern for the weak and vulnerable at all times, so we do all we can to ensure that our programs are safe spaces where children can grow and develop to their full potential.
The Safe Churches Training Agreement has made available guidelines for electronic communications in churches. Download
Changes to the Working with Children Check March 2010
Baptist Churches NSW & ACT child protection training is done through the National Council of Churches in Australia (Safe Churches Training Agreement) with an increasing number of other churches becoming endorsed training partners. This means that training done through any of the endorsed training partners will meet the requirements and you will be entered on the Safety Management Online national database.The Baptist program is called Creating Safe Spaces, but credit is received for any endorsed course. The training covers four areas:
Duty of Care, Child Protection, Safe Leaders, Safe Programs
In NSW, anyone involved in ministry with children, in a volunteer or paid capacity, first needs to :
1. Complete a Working with Children Check. The completed forms are now done online and need to be printed and kept securely by the employer, which is the local church.
2. Undertake a SCTA endorsed Creating Safe Churches training program and be entered on the Safety Management Online database. This training needs a refresher course every three years. There are four modules in Creating Safe Spaces. Volunteers involved in church kids ministry and those with oversight of those ministries need to complete all four modules. The first two modules is currently sufficient for SRE (Scripture) teachers going into government schools under Baptist authorisation, but isunce other denominations require it and due to cross authorisation requirements, those training from 2011 will need to do all four modules.
Before churches employ someone in a paid position they need to do a background check for them. This is now a pre-employment check.
Forms and explanations of requirements for NSW are at www.kids.nsw.gov.au