WHAT RESPONSIBILITY DO WE BEAR?
Youth ministry is a risky business. Think of what can go wrong when you are with youth at an event. The possibilities for injuries, accidents or crises, big or small, are endless. The good news is that thinking ahead and following basic risk management guidelines can help manage and minimize some of the risks. Risk management is more than looking for trouble. It’s looking for solutions that can make ministry more effective.
Risk management can seem like it takes the fun and spontaneity out of your plans. Leaders might be tempted to ignore risk management conversations or guidelines out of overconfidence, excitement or even frustration. Shifting your mindset about risk management can be helpful. Consider risk management as a way we show love and care to the young people and adults in our ministry and at our Servant Event. Good risk management does not just help ensure health and safety, but it builds trust. It shows that we want the best for youth and adults, not only what is fun or convenient.
Risk management is an integrated approach for dealing with uncertainty. Risk management includes protection against harm or loss to participants, staff, property, and financial resources, and procedures for handling emergencies. Risk management is designed to provide a safe experience for participants and staff, and to prevent or reduce legal and public relations problems. Risk management puts you, not the risk, in charge.
Steps of Risk Management
Step one is Risk Identification. This includes looking for the risks in each activity, and identifying who or what is at risk. People and things that could be at risk are:
- People (youth, staff, volunteers)
- Finances (personal, congregational)
- Property (personal, congregational, borrowed)
- Reputation (youth, youth leaders, church)
Look through the following list of risk types. Which might be included in your Servant Event?
- Equipment operation (power tools, vehicles, scaffolding, ladders, etc.)
- Program activities (swimming, sports & games, service projects, etc.)
- Human behavior (drugs & alcohol, runaways, sexual abuse, improper training of staff, fights, lost person, etc.)
- High stress, exhaustion, and mental health (travel away from home, new activities, unusual sleeping arrangements, etc.)
- Transportation (moving participants off-site and back, movement of volunteers, etc.)
- Natural hazards (cliffs, bodies of water, rough terrain, etc.)
- Natural disasters (lightning, tornadoes, earthquakes, storms, flood, fire, heat, etc.)
- Medical conditions (asthma, diabetes, allergies, heart attacks, etc.)
Step two is Risk Assessment, or sizing up the risks of a certain activity. Ask the following questions as you assess potential risks:
- How likely is it that a risky incident will occur?
- What are the consequences if a risky incident occurs?
- Which risks can you tolerate?
- Which risks require the purchase of insurance?
- Which risks can be reduced or controlled?
- Which risks are simply too great to bear?
Step three is Risk Management, or deciding how to control your risks. The level of risk that you take can be controlled by:
- Avoiding the risk: Do not offer a program you consider too risky. Certain activities simply should not be offered.
- Modifying the risk: Change the activity so the chance of harm occurring and the impact of potential damage are acceptable.›
- Transferring responsibility for the risk: Shift at least part of the risk through a contract, insurance or waivers.
- Retaining the risk: Accept the risk and prepare for the consequences.
Step four is Implementation: putting your plan to work, reviewing and revising as needed.
To read the rest of this section, download the full PDF here.
To see an editable Word version of the forms in this section, go to this Dropbox.
To see the other host materials, visit the Servant Event Host page.
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