What Would You Do?

Monday, July 23rd, 2018

Imagine this scenario: The church where you work is expanding, and they are considering moving the children and youth ministry to other areas within the large facility. The good news is that the growing ministry will now have bigger classrooms, more space, and separate restroom areas. However, the new space is in a basement area where none of the classrooms have windows. You already know there is no room in the budget to do major demolition to install windows in the corridor areas. What are your options?

You know that windows and transparency are a very important part of keeping children and youth safe. This is especially important if leaders need to provide counsel in a semi-private area, but open to others seeing. A room without windows does not provide this kind of transparency or protection for anyone.

It’s time to think out of the box. First, the church could replace or add window panes to some of the doors. If this isn’t feasible, you need to make sure that everyone is aware of the policy that no adult should be alone with a child or youth–and these rooms are no exception. Offer alternatives, such as meeting in the hallway or moving these types of meetings up to a windowed area. Finally, you may decide that the new area won’t work for some age groups. In some cases, moving may not be the best option.