‘Quick-Start Guide’ Offers Help in Implementing Safe Church Guidelines

“A well-implemented safe church culture may be the very thing that saves a child or an elder from abuse; it may very well save a life.”

These powerful words from the Very Rev. Audrey Sutton, rector of St. Barnabas, DeLand; dean of the Northeast Deanery; and co-chair of the Safe Church Commission for the Episcopal Diocese of Central Florida, articulate the reason behind the recent formulation of what she calls a “quick-start guide” for the rollout of the recent revision of diocesan safe church policies. The guide, developed by the Rev. Canon Dr. Dan Smith, canon to the ordinary; Sutton; and Monica Taffinder, mental health therapist, co-founder and CFO of Grace Clinic Christian Counseling, Winter Park, and Safe Church Commission co-chair, offers guidance to those seeking to implement the policies in the best and most appropriate way.

Per Smith, this step-by-step approach comes as a response to questions the diocesan office received from conscientious churches and staff. “The need for this echoes my thoughts, expressed in the safe church webinar, that churches need to approach this in as uncomplicated a way as possible,” he said. “We’ve put together what we think is an easy way to get started without overwhelming anyone. We set forth some bite-sized pieces for churches to accomplish and then move forward in a six-step process.”

Quick-Start Guide

The six steps direct congregations to:

1. Appoint a Praesidium administrator and have that person trained and registered with the diocese. (The diocese uses Praesidium Academy’s “Safe Churches, Safe Communities” online abuse prevention training curriculum; for more information, visit this link.)
2. If not already accomplished, complete background checks on staff and volunteers in ministry.
3. Ensure safe church training using Praesidium for staff and volunteers in ministry. Contact Meagan Feibelman, Smith’s executive assistant, mfeibelman@cfdiocese.org, for any additional assistance.
4. (For rector, vicar or priest-in-charge): Establish a Safe Church Committee with three to six members, half of those being women. Churches with an Average Sunday Attendance of less than 75 may use the vestry as the Safe Church Committee; the diocese encourages churches with an ASA of over 75 to form a separate committee.
5. Complete these first four steps by Nov. 29, designated as Break the Silence Sunday in The Episcopal Church. (Break the Silence Sunday is an annual day of observance dedicated to acknowledging, addressing and ending gender-based, domestic and sexual violence; materials for its observance will be available online.) “Break the Silence Sunday has a direct link to being a safe church, and it gave us a natural date for churches to accomplish this work by without it being oppressive,” Smith said.
6. Following this, the Safe Church Committee shall then work to ensure compliance with remaining requirements of the safe church policies.

“We know that the policies are robust and can be overwhelming,” Sutton said. “If anyone needs help, first, double-check the full policy (available at this link) to see if the answer you need is already listed. If it seems like a ‘gray’ situation or is not addressed in the policy, leaders can reach out to the Deanery-assigned safe church representative or to Monica Taffinder or me.

“If it is a special situation that requires oversight, please reach out to Canon Dan,” she continued. “Of course, if Monica or I connect with someone and realize Canon Dan should be the one to address the situation, we will always point them to him. I have met with a handful of clergy regarding safe church, and we truly want this to be a success for those implementing changes and updates in their parish. We are happy to support and encourage.

“My hope is that these new guidelines, along with the quick-start guide, provide support to our churches as well as an updated response to situations we may come up against in ministry,” Sutton said. “Abuse is a reality in the body of Christ, and we have a responsibility as ministers (both ordained and lay) to protect and prevent harm. I pray that these revised policies act as a scaffolding to those in ministry, better equipping us all.”

Key Links and Resources

• For the diocese’s Abuse Prevention Compliance Form, visit this link.
• For the full version of the diocese’s safe church policies in English, visit this link.
• For the full version of the diocese’s safe church policies in Spanish, visit this link.
• For a condensed version of the diocese’s safe church policies, visit this link.
• For a condensed version of the diocese’s safe church policies in Spanish, visit this link
• For information on Praesidium Academy, visit this link.
• To access the diocese’s Safe Church Video Resource Library, visit this link, and contact Meagan Feibelman (mfeibelman@cfdiocese.org) to receive your password.
• For all diocesan resources on safe church, visit this link.