Q: Our church has several small groups that meet in members’ homes. Child care is provided in some of the homes for the children of parents who attend. Does this arrangement expose our church to liability?
The fact that the church is promoting these small group meetings exposes it to potential liability for injuries that occur to children who are being supervised. Those injuries may arise in a number of ways, and could include child molestation by a volunteer worker, parent, or an older child; personal injuries occurring during games, “horseplay,” or fighting; choking; or poisoning. All of these risks can be greatly reduced if a church adopts certain safeguards, including the following:
- Use at least two volunteer workers to oversee the children. One worker is unacceptable. If only one worker shows up for a particular meeting, then a member of the small group will have to assist in the supervision of children, or the meeting must be canceled.
- Segregate the children into different groups based on age, if possible, with two volunteer workers in each group (risks increase dramatically if “power inequity” exists, such as older children being grouped together with preschoolers).
- Volunteer workers should be adults. The risk of injury and molestation increases moderately if one adult and one adolescent worker are used together; and the risk increases dramatically if only minors are used to supervise children. One obvious solution is to have parents themselves take turns serving as supervisors for the children.
- Volunteer workers must be screened (application, reference checks, criminal records check).
- If young children (preschoolers) are present, the area where they will be supervised should be thoroughly inspected prior to each meeting to remove any toxic or dangerous substances or devices.
- Individual members of the small group should make unannounced and periodic visits to the area where children are being supervised.
- Older children should be encouraged to report any inappropriate behavior that occurs during these meetings.
- Restroom breaks present a significant risk. Appropriate safeguards will depend on the layout of the home and the age of the children. Children must not be allowed to wander off to a restroom alone, or with one or more older children. The best practice would be to contact parents and have them escort their child to the restroom. Most other responses will create unacceptable risks. Some cases of child molestation occurring in private homes during small group meetings have involved children wandering off to unsupervised areas of the home.
There have been cases of children being sexually molested, or injured, during small group meetings in members’ homes, so this is a risk that churches must take seriously. Safeguards must not be viewed as “nuisances” to be ignored, but rather as essential measures to ensure the safety and well-being of vulnerable children. If meaningful and effective precautions cannot be implemented, then the church has no alternative but to discontinue child care at these meetings.
