{"id":32046,"date":"2018-11-19T09:39:30","date_gmt":"2018-11-19T16:39:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wwv.group.com\/childrens-ministry\/?p=32046"},"modified":"2018-11-19T19:25:21","modified_gmt":"2018-11-20T02:25:21","slug":"5-ministry-practices-were-thankful-for","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wwv.group.com\/childrens-ministry\/blog\/training\/5-ministry-practices-were-thankful-for\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Ministry Practices We\u2019re Thankful For\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]In the spirit of giving thanks this holiday season, we\u2019ve decided to list a few safety practices we\u2019re especially thankful for. While most churches have basic safety standards in place, we\u2019ve highlighted a few features that make us extra grateful.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Photo ID Badges<\/strong>\u2014Once used primarily in the health care field, photo ID badges are now common practice in education and even retail. Every worker in your children\u2019s and youth ministry needs to wear a badge with their name and photo to validate they are an approved and qualified volunteer in your program.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Criminal Background Checks<\/strong>\u2014<a href=\"http:\/\/group.com\/shepherdswatch\">Background screening<\/a> needs to include information from a national database rather than only a state-wide check. And if you\u2019re not doing a background check on those you trust to work with children and youth\u2014you\u2019re not meeting basic standards. You\u2019ll have a hard time proving \u201cdue diligence\u201d if you skip this step.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Photo Release Permission<\/strong>\u2014Be cautious of uploading photos of minors to your church or ministry website, Facebook page, or any other online platform. While social media is a great tool for marketing ministry, there are protocols that you need to be aware of. Simply stated, you cannot post pictures or videos of minors without parental permission. Whether you are a small church or a very large ministry, this applies to everyone!<\/li>\n<li><strong>Training<\/strong>\u2014A safe volunteer is a trained volunteer! Those who provide care to children, youth, and the elderly need to be trained in discipline practices, CPR, and emergency responses, in addition to abuse recognition and prevention.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Secured Space<\/strong>\u2014If just anyone can walk in off the street and visit the rooms where your children\u2019s ministry is happening, you\u2019ve got a serious problem. No unauthorized person should have access to the space that houses the activity of minors: this includes parents. A point of check-in and release needs to be designated and closely monitored.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>This Thanksgiving we\u2019re thankful for you and your commitment to safe ministry![\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]- &#8211; Taken from a recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.group.com\/category\/ministry-resources\/volunteer-management\/shepherds-watch-background-checks.do\">Shepherd&#8217;s Watch<\/a> newsletter. Sign up today for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.group.com\/category\/ministry-resources\/volunteer-management\/shepherds-watch-background-checks.do\">Shepherd&#8217;s Watch Background Checks<\/a> and receive your free monthly newsletter filled with advice and tips on keeping your church safe.<\/p>\n<p><em>(We love to provide tips to keep your ministry safe. You may also want to consult your local legal advisors to get their perspective on this topic!)<\/em>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]In the spirit of giving thanks this holiday season, we\u2019ve decided to list a few safety practices we\u2019re especially thankful for. While most churches have basic safety standards in place, we\u2019ve highlighted a few features that make us extra grateful. Photo ID Badges\u2014Once used primarily in the health care field, photo ID badges are now common practice in education and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":82,"featured_media":33016,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[722,6,670],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32046","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-shepherds-watch","category-training","category-volunteers"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>5 Ministry Practices We\u2019re Thankful For\u00a0 - Group Children&#039;s Ministry<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"While most churches have basic safety standards in place, we\u2019ve highlighted a few features that make us extra grateful.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/wwv.group.com\/childrens-ministry\/blog\/training\/5-ministry-practices-were-thankful-for\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"5 Ministry Practices We\u2019re Thankful For\u00a0 - 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