Child Protection

The Church of Scotland is committed to the highest possible standards of care and protection for our young people. By law, all volunteers working with Netherlee Church organisations require to be Disclosure checked, even if they have previously been checked for other jobs.

To help ensure the welfare of all our Church community, in Netherlee we have a Child Protection Panel consisting of four Church members, each fully checked and trained as child protection co-ordinators and signatories for Disclosure Scotland. This panel carries out the checks and training necessary to appoint volunteers to work with our children and young or vulnerable people.

PROCEDURE

Before working in any Church organisation, a potential volunteer fills in an application form, giving their personal details and two referees. The referees are then contacted by the Panel, and asked for details on the applicant’s suitability. The applicant completes a ‘Disclosure Scotland’ form and provides various identification documents to the Panel. The applicant also completes a ‘Working with Children Declaration’ where they state if they have ever been excluded from access to children or working with children. Once all the checks are carried out and approved satisfactorily, the volunteer is then approved by the Kirk Session.

VOLUNTEER TRAINING

The Church of Scotland asks that every children’s worker undergoes a short training session, to inform them about child protection procedures and potential risks to children and leaders alike. When required, our Panel runs a two hour child protection training session open to all helpers, Elders and Church members who would like to attend. Dates are advertised in the Link magazine, and in our Church order of service.

For information on Child Protection, please contact Val de Villiers via the Church Office.

Link: church scotland child protection