Our Commitment to Safety

Your kid’s safety is our priority.

Child Safety is Job Number One.

Ensuring child safety is fundamental to the mission of Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Carolina. Please review our Commitment to Safety below.

The Safety and Well-being of Young People is Our Number One Priority.

We work every day to create a safe, fun environment so kids can have every opportunity to be successful in life. We have ZERO tolerance for inappropriate behavior of any kind, including child sexual abuse or misconduct, and we put resources behind that stance.

Culture of Safety: Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Carolina continually updates robust safety policies, programs and training for our staff and volunteers that are designed to promote child safety and protect young people from threats that are present in our society. We implement layers of safety policies and guidelines to keep our kids safe including:

Mandatory reporting of all allegations of abuse.
Robust background checks on all employees and volunteers.
A dedicated Child Safety Committee on our Corporate Board of Directors to guide our organization’s safety efforts.

Safety Policies

Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Carolina has comprehensive safety policies in place that protect youth – including, but not limited to, supervision, transportation, communication and prohibiting private one-on-one contact.

24-hour Toll-free Child Safety Hotline

We encourage all staff, members and families to report any incident or situation they feel is unsafe. Through our national partnership with Praesidium, one of the nation’s leading safety experts, Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Carolina members and staff have access to a confidential 24-hour toll-free Child Safety Hotline, 866-607-SAFE (7233) or email SafeClub@Praesidiuminc.com.

Mandatory Background Checks

Mandatory criminal background checks are required every year for every staff and board member at Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Carolina In addition, criminal background checks are required for any volunteer who has direct contact with children. All potential employees and volunteers are also run through Reference Services, Inc.

Required Immediate Reporting

Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Carolina staff and volunteers are all mandated reporters. We are required to report any critical incident/safety concern to local authorities immediately. We are also required to report any critical incident to Boys & Girls Clubs of America within 24 hours.

Mandatory Annual Safety Assessments

We complete a safety assessment each year to ensure we continually make improvements to safety at our Clubs.

Safety Training

Ongoing training and supervision of staff are critical. We participate in a wide variety of child safety training conducted such as seminars, conferences, webinars, and a semi-annual safety symposium. We also engage leading third-party safety experts to provide guidance for our policies and approaches, including Preasidium, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, and the National Children’s Advocacy Center.

Mandatory Employee Reference

Any employee interested in moving to another Boys & Girls Club is required to have a reference from the previous Club, even if the Clubs are within the same community.

Safety Committee

Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Carolina has a dedicated safety committee to provide input and guidance on local policies and safety strategies. Priorities and initiatives include the physical safety of children and staff, emotional safety of children and staff, and saafe facilities for children and staff.

Partnering Together to Create Safe Communities

State and Local Laws:
We comply with federal, state and local safety laws, including those impacting facilities and vehicles.

Safety Partnerships: Nationally, Boys & Girls Clubs of America works with leading experts in the areas of safety, security, and technology to develop state-of-the-art solutions for Clubs. Our partners include:

National Child Safety Advisory Task Force, made up of leading experts and organizations.
Blue Ribbon Task Force, comprised of local Club leaders charged with providing input on the safety direction and key safety initiatives.
Mental Health First Aid, a national program that teaches skills to recognize and respond to signs of mental illness and substance abuse.
Crisis Text Line, a confidential text message service for youth in times of crisis.

Local partnerships:

Harnett County Sheriff’s Office
Lee County Sheriff’s Office
Chatham County Sheriff’s Office

National Partners with Boys & Girls Clubs of America:

BGCA has advocated the passage of the U.S. PROTECT Act, which improved background screening systems and access. The national organization has also partnered with the FBI, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and the Centers for Disease Control to contribute to the development of safety practices that benefit ALL youth-serving organizations.

America’s young people deserve nothing less than our constant focus on their safety and our firm commitment to protect every child who is entrusted to our care at Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Carolina. To learn more about our national safety policies and actions, please visit Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Child Safety.