Evangelicals Now
<< January 2002 >>

Child Protection in the Church

Good advice: biblical framework

CHILD PROTECTION IN THE CHURCH
By Roger Hitchings with Paul Brown and Roger Badams
FIEC Citizenship Committee 112 pages.
ISBN 0 9538250 1 9

So has your church put together its Child Protection Policy yet? And if not, why not? If anyone out there is still in doubt about the need for such a document then this excellent little book produced by the FIEC's Citizenship Committee should be at the top of their reading list.

Child protection in the church is a very thorough treatment of the whole subject of our duty to and responsibility for children, both our own and other people's. It covers such areas as: guidelines for churches working with children, our obligation to the state, maintaining discipline in children's groups, training leaders and responding to situations where abuse may be suspected or alleged.

A strength of the book is that it does not simply deal with the practical issues but begins by laying a solid foundation of biblical principles for the upbringing of children. The parents' responsibility is seen as being primary, but the church and the wider community also have a part to play. Questions are asked as to the ambivalent role our modern society plays in its response to the care of children-on the one hand abuse is rightly condemned, but what about our attitudes to marriage, abortion, and family situations which make abuse far more likely to occur?

This book should be compulsory reading for all senior youth leaders, and every church should possess at least one copy for reference purposes. It will be very useful to have to hand the information contained in the appendices: Home Office Guidelines, relevant extracts from the Children Act 1989 and articles from the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989, as well as sources of further materials and a suggested outline for a Child Protection Policy.

Another use to which this book could be put would be as part of a training programme for new and prospective youth leaders. Its clear and concise layout with summary boxes at the end of each section make it a useful starting point for teaching about the care of children. In my opinion Part One could profitably be used as a general church Bible study.

Make sure your church has a copy of this excellent book now!

Margaret Jones, Swanley