Explanation

The Episcopal Church is a leader in creating welcoming, caring, and safe environments for children and adults. Safe Church, Safe Communities continues that tradition by offering robust training and resources for many dioceses and congregations. However, the needs and resources of dioceses, congregations, and diocesan institutions vary widely. Differences in U.S. state laws and international laws further complicate the needs of dioceses. This resolution is aimed at providing dioceses with more flexibility in their ability to select a training product and method of delivery to best serve the congregations and institutions within each diocese, while maintaining the standards of care, safety, and accountability under the current Policy for the Protection of Children and Youth and the Policy for the Protection of Vulnerable Adults. Today, there are diverse set of options available that may better meet the needs of a particular ministry settings (i.e., retirement homes, camps, and schools) for which Safe Church is not always contextually relevant. Other available products integrate into church management databases currently utilized by dioceses for easier tracking and training. Overall, flexibility for dioceses in authorizing different resources, products, and methods of delivery will allow our dioceses to best serve the people we care for across our congregations and institutions.