I. Purpose and Scope
The Branches Club, Inc. (the “Club”) considers the safety of Club members to be a top priority. The Club seeks to provide a safe and secure environment for all Club members, especially for children. The Club is enacting this Child Abuse Prevention Policy in order to:
- demonstrate its commitment to helping prevent child abuse in all forms, including verbal, physical, emotional and sexual abuse;
- set forth procedures and best practices for independent contractors and volunteers interacting with children on Club property; and
- notify independent contractors and volunteers of mandatory reporting obligations under Georgia law with respect to suspected child abuse.
For purposes of this policy, “child” means an individual under the age of eighteen who is the child of a Club member or a ward under the care of a legal guardian who is a Club member.
II. POLICIES and Procedures
1. Background Checks
The Club will make reasonable efforts to ensure that all independent contractors engaged by the Club to provide child-directed services on Club property will complete background checks prior to providing services. The Club’s Board of Directors will determine, on a case-by-case basis in light of all the surrounding circumstances, what constitutes a disqualifying offense that will keep an individual from providing child-directed services for the Club. Generally, convictions for an offense involving children and/or involving violence or indecency will preclude someone from being permitted to work with children.
2. “No One-on-One” Policy
It is the Club’s goal that all independent contractors engaged by the Club and all volunteers adhere to a “no one-on-one” policy while providing child-directed services on Club property. This means that no independent contractor engaged by the Club or volunteer providing child-directed services would be alone with an unrelated child on Club property. This policy helps to protect children, while also reminding adults to avoid entering into situations which could lead to misunderstandings and/or false accusations of child abuse.
All independent contractors engaged by the Club to provide child-directed services on Club property will be informed of the Club’s “no one-on-one” policy. Failure to adhere to this policy may lead to termination of the independent contractor’s services. Independent contractors will be required to acknowledge that they understand and agree to abide by this policy.
Club members who volunteer and interact with children on Club property will be informed of, and encouraged to abide by, the Club’s “no one-on-one” policy. Club members who engage an independent contractor to provide child-directed services on Club property (for example, tennis lessons) are encouraged to communicate this policy to the independent contractor and are responsible for the actions of the independent contractor.
3. Mandated Reporters
All independent contractors engaged by the Club to perform child-directed services and all volunteers interacting with children will be notified of Georgia’s mandatory reporting law (Official Code of Georgia Annotated – Section 19-7-5) relating to reporting suspected child abuse. This state law generally requires individuals who work with children to report suspected child abuse. Changes in the law, which went into effect on July 1, 2012, expanded the pool of mandated reporters to include volunteers whose duties include attending to children.