Guidelines
Appendix 1
Appendix 2
Appendix 3
These standards are intended to provide guidelines for all people who provide ministry to children or vulnerable people on behalf of the Church. The guidelines are not intended to be onerous or to create obstacles for people who willingly provide time and resources to help children and other people to engage in wholesome activities or when providing counselling and spiritual guidance.
It is readily acknowledged that services provided by volunteers, ministers and employees are vital to the Church and are greatly appreciated. Because all people involved in this work represent the Church, there is a need for guidelines in the way they perform their services. These Standards, therefore, are seen as a means to provide protection for the "worker", the Church and those for whom services are provided.
This document sets out in writing what is expected of those who work with children and vulnerable people. Separate guidelines are issued for those who work in youth and young adult ministry settings (Journeying Together Hikoi Tahi).
These standards have been prepared by the National Office for Professional Standards in consultation with the National Professional Standards Committee. Wider consultation has also taken place within the Church and with other organisations who provide voluntary services (e.g. Cancer Society).
Co-operation from everyone engaged in ministry will be greatly appreciated to enhance the safety of children and other people. High standards of care should be consistently achieved.
+ Archbishop John A Dew
on behalf of New Zealand Catholic Bishops' Conference and Congregational Leaders of New Zealand
1. This document relates to people involved with ministry to children. A separate protocol document has been approved to provide "Standards for Catholic Youth and Young Adult Ministry in Aoteoroa New Zealand." (Journeying Together. Hikoi Tahi)
2. In all situations where volunteers or employees are involved in contact with children, there is a risk that the volunteers/employees may abuse that relationship. Therefore, the parish or ministry leader should always assess the level of potential risk of abuse or other danger. The level of risk should determine the measures to be taken to ensure the safety of children.
(a) Low level of potential risk
(for example, a crèche which is held during a church service in an open area with a number of helpers including parents and other suitable volunteers)
Suitable procedures should include - parents to be consulted regularly to ensure they feel secure in the way their children are supervised. Parents' requests should be respected, for example, as to whether they prefer to take their own children to the toilet or are they happy for a helper to assist.
- volunteers should all be approved and rostered. The system should not be open to anyone else (other than parents helping with their own children) joining the crèche supervising team without approval.
- volunteers should be well known to the parish or ministry leadership (either personally or by reputation) as people who are suitable to work with children.
- training should be provided (this may not always be possible prior to each new volunteer commencing in the activity, but should be available as soon as practical)
Topics include
(b) High level of potential risk
(for example, counselling vulnerable children on a one-to-one basis, or overnight activity such as weekend camps, activity involving regular contact with children).
Suitable procedures should include
- Vetting
Vetting can be carried out only with the consent of the applicant given on the correct form "Consent to Disclosure of Information." (Page 15)
- Written employment agreements
If the role of an employee involves interaction with children or young people, it would be useful if the applicable employment agreement contained a provision which said "Any offer of employment and the continuation of that employment is dependent on the following:
- Strict confidentiality in relation to police checks must be observed between NOPS and the parish or ministry leaders.
- Training
Training to be provided as soon as possible. This creates a further opportunity to become acquainted more fully with the person.
Topics include
Follow-up training
As far as possible, some follow-up training for volunteers should be conducted to include feed-back from the volunteers and group discussion on the experience (positive and negative) of volunteering, and recommendations.
Volunteers have the right to
Volunteers have a responsibility to
Volunteers are to be personally accountable for their decisions and actions in order to create a safe and supportive environment in working for the Church.
Volunteers are to be honest and trustworthy in all matters.
Volunteers are expected to ensure that all people understand the services offered and the nature and purposes of those services.
The Church respects the rights of all people to privacy and confidentiality. Confidential information should be shared with others only with the informed consent of the person concerned, unless there is clear danger to life, to others, or to the public at large.
Church volunteers will treat all with whom they come in contact with respect and courtesy, regardless of race, gender, age, nationality, religion, political views, sexual orientation, status, health, intelligence or any other differentiating character.
Church volunteers shall avoid all behaviour that could reasonably be interpreted as harassment. Harassment encompasses a broad range of physical or verbal behaviour, including but not limited to, physical or psychological abuse, racial insults, unwelcome touching or sexual advance and sexual jokes or comments. Harassment can occur as a result of a single incident or a pattern of behaviour where the purpose or effect is to create a hostile, offensive or intimidating environment.
Volunteers are not to access websites which have pornographic links or to use email material which is inappropriate and inconsistent with the behaviour required of a Church worker.
Volunteers shall not engage in any sexual activity with any person with whom they currently work, or make any sexual advances verbally, physically or by innuendo. It is the volunteers' responsibility to maintain appropriate boundaries.
Volunteers have a responsibility to take all allegations of sexual abuse seriously. They should not attempt to assess or investigate any such allegations but will document them and follow the appropriate diocesan procedures.
Volunteers should avoid any activities, whether connected with their position or otherwise, which would compromise their integrity, and/or bring their message, the people they work with, their colleagues or the wider Church community into disrepute.
At all times volunteers will conduct themselves in a manner which ensures that all people are supported and empowered, through the services they provide.
Volunteers have a responsibility to recognise their strengths and limitations. This ensures that they know how their decisions and actions affect the people they work with.
Volunteers will honour the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi in their work and endeavour to be culturally sensitive to all people they engage with and avoid imposing mono-cultural values.
Volunteers will offer only services that come within their competence, qualifications and mandate. They will refer matters outside these areas to the appropriate body.
If volunteers consider that' their mandate requires more expertise than they have, they will inform the appropriate body of their need for training or request a change in the tasks they are asked to perform.
Volunteers will seek regular supervision which will provide them with an avenue to discuss issues and seek advice.
Volunteers are accountable to the New Zealand judicial system.
by Professor Patrick Parkinson at the National Ecumenical Consultation on Sexual Misconduct and Abuse in Australian Churches (2005)
"I think there is a very great danger in our Churches of ineffective child protection strategies. This may be a jaundiced NSW perspective, but I am tired of forms. I am tired of the number of times you have to sign things in different Church procedures. "I am not just talking about one denomination. Some of it is driven by State-based laws as well. These are important aspects of child protection. In my book I talk about the importance of those referee checks and asking people to sign that they have not been accused of abuse.
"These are important strategies, but they are not the only strategy. There is a danger that if we just put systems in place, then what we have are quite ineffective child protection strategies, just filling in the forms and not really focussing on where the big risks are.
"That is the main point. These systems tend to cut across all children's ministries, all youth ministries, and that means we can sometimes focus on areas of lower risk and not focus on areas of greater risk.
"I ask you to imagine the crèche in your local Church. The risk of child abuse in our crèche is not great, and I doubt it is great in yours either.
"The problem about not looking at the greatest risks is you have the same approach to the crèche as you do to the areas of greatest risk. We need to focus our limited energies on the areas where the risks are great and not trust in procedures that are non-discriminating in terms of the risk. If all we have is a manual, then it is like having a manual for fire safety.
"That's OK, but what you really need are people who are looking out for the electrical cords with the frayed ends, and those who are alert to the smell of smoke and so on. Fire safety is about being alert to the risks. The manual may help if people read it, but that is not what keeps you safe from fire. What keeps you safe from fire is alertness.
"We need to develop priorities through risk assessment. In my view, we should always do a referee check for somebody who is new to the Church or who we don't know.
"By referee check, I don't mean the person they named on the form, but I mean ringing up the minister of the last Church of which they were a part. The referees they named may not know of their background, but the last Church likely does".
Licensing & Vetting Service Centre
Police National Headquarters
P O Box 3017
WELLINGTON 6140
I .............................................................................................
(Surname) (First names)
..................................................................Sex (M/F) ............
(Maiden name or any other names used)
Place of birth.................................................................................
Date of Birth ......................Nationality........................................
Residential Address......................................
Suburb..................................City ........................................
NZ Driver Licence number.....................................
...do hereby consent to the disclosure to the Catholic Church of New Zealand by the New Zealand Police of any information they may have pursuant to this application.
I understand that any record of criminal convictions I might have will automatically be concealed if I meet the eligibility criteria stipulated in Section 7 of the Criminal Records (Clean Slate) Act 2004.
Signed ......................................................Date...................
Copyright 2008 Catholic Communications for the NZ Catholic Bishops' Conference
