This webinar was offered in Spring of 2026 serving as an overview of UUA recommendations for children and youth safety including congregational policies. Topics included:

• Complexities and tensions

• Containers to build a culture of safety including training, abuse prevention, covenant, and UU values.

• Recommendations for safety for children and religious education

• Recommendations for youth: middle school through high school

• When more help is needed: expanding confidentiality and mandated reporting.

This is a very brief overview. We encourage leaders to reach out to your regional staff for coaching and support for your congregation’s context.

Webinar Recording

Resources Shared

Links:

• Slides
• Safe Congregations Handbook
• Safety for Religious Education and Children
• Safety Assessment for Ministry with Children (pdf) from The Guild of Interim Religious Educators (GIRE)
• Fourteen Recommended Practices for Safety in Youth Ministry
• Sample conversation for older youth in spaces with younger youth — From UUA policies for UUA events; can use as model/inspiration
• UUA Youth Safety Guidelines — While this policy was not designed for use in congregations but at UUA-sponsored youth events, many congregations draw from it in creating their own policies