At the Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County, Child Safety is Job No. 1
The Safety and Wellbeing 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.
National Child Abuse Hotline | 800-422-4453
Provides free 24/7 access for adults and youth to professional child abuse crisis counselors who offer crisis intervention and confidential referrals.
Child Safety Helpline | 866-607-7233
Praesidium provides employees, volunteers, parents, and youth with anonymous helpline for reporting of suspicious or inappropriate behaviors regarding children.
Ethics Point Hotline | 866-295-3701
Provides employees, volunteers and parents anonymous reporting of any unethical or illegal workplace activities.
Crisis Text Line | Text CLUB to 741741
Provides free 24/7 access for adults and youth to confidential support with professional crisis counselors.
Report to Child Protective Services | 855-323-3237
Provides 24/7 access for adults and youth local anonymous reporting of child abuse and/or neglect.
Culture of Safety
We continually update 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. We have comprehensive safety policies in place that protect youth – including, but not limited to, supervision, transportation, communication, and prohibiting private one-on-one contact.
Background Checks & Employee References
Mandatory FBI criminal background checks are required every year for every staff and board member. 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 the National Sex Offender Registry. 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.
Required Immediate Reporting
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. We encourage all staff, members, and families to report any incident or situation they feel is unsafe. Through our national partnership with Praesidium, members and staff have access to a confidential 24-hour toll-free Child Safety Hotline, 866-607-SAFE (7233) or email SafeClub@Praesidiuminc.com.
Annual Safety Assessments and Trainings
We complete a safety assessment each year to ensure we continually make improvements to safety at our Clubs. Ongoing training and supervision of staff is critical. We participate in a wide variety of child safety training. We also engage leading third-party safety experts to provide guidance for our policies and approaches.
Safety Committee
We have a dedicated safety committee to provide input and guidance on local policies and safety strategies.
State and Local Laws
We comply with federal, state, and local safety laws, including those impacting facilities and vehicles.
Nationally, Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) works with leading experts in the areas of safety, security and technology to develop state-of-the-art solutions for Clubs. BGCA has advocated the passage of the U.S. PROTECT Act, which improved background screening systems and access. The national organization 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. To learn more about our national safety policies and actions, please visit Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Child Safety page.