The Council Assembly published a Child Protection Policy (Dec 2020 update) for the Presbyterian Church, which is a stand-alone Supplementary Provision to the Book of Order. This Policy must be applied when people in the Church work with and or have responsibility for children and young people.
The Child Protection Policy calls all of our churches to:
“…do all in our power to ensure that children and young people in our care will be nurtured and cared for in a safe environment and be protected from harm.”
The Church's Safety Warrant of Fitness (WOF) training provides practical tools and insights to assist all those working with children and young people. The training equips parishes to comply with New Zealand law, the Church's Child Protection Policy and, most importantly, keep the children and young people in our care safe.
The WOF encompasses essential training on:
- Introduction to the Church's Child Protection Policy and ethical practice
- Health and Safety practices
- Recognising, recording and responding to abuse
- Safe recruitment practices
This training is compulsory for all in the Church who with children and young people under the age of 18.
Due to the sensitive nature of some of the content in the WOF training, the minimum age of a WOF participant is set at 16 years of age.
Learn more about the Safety WOF and access training materials and resources.