“Not All Adults” Is Not a Child Safety Policy: Why Safeguarding Matters

Safeguarding means putting protections in place before someone gets hurt. We recognize that children depend on adults, that adults hold power, and that goodwill alone cannot keep children safe.

You don’t have to believe every priest, teacher, coach, or foster parent is dangerous to recognize that someone dangerous can gain access to children through those roles. Safeguarding policies make it harder for that person to exploit access, trust, and authority.

Basic safeguarding includes:

• Screening adults who work with children. Check references, qualifications, and relevant records. A background check is one layer of protection; it cannot tell you about conduct nobody has reported.
• Setting clear boundaries. Establish rules for private messages, transportation, overnight stays, physical contact, and isolated time with a child.
• Making interactions observable. Use visible meeting spaces and appropriate supervision so children’s safety does not depend on one adult’s word.
• Teaching children their rights. Children can refuse unwanted touch, question an adult’s behavior, and tell someone when something feels wrong. Adults still carry responsibility for protecting them.
• Making concerns easy to report. Give children and adults clear ways to speak up, including a route outside the authority of the person involved.
• Responding when concerns arise. Take disclosures seriously, protect the child, and follow reporting requirements. An institution’s reputation must never come before a child’s safety.
• Applying the rules consistently. The beloved pastor, championship coach, generous donor, and longtime employee follow the same boundaries as everyone else.

Safeguarding also addresses neglect, bullying, emotional abuse, and unsafe conditions. It belongs in ordinary daily practice, before a crisis forces everyone to pay attention.

“Not all adults” does not answer the safeguarding question. We already know that. The question is: What protections will be there for a child when an adult abuses their trust?

A child should not have to prove that a respected adult is dangerous before the adults around them agree to sensible precautions.