The Australian Government has recently announced a multi-stage process for easing the restrictions put in place to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Whilst this is an exciting and adventurous time, it’s also a great opportunity to make sure that you’re heading into this next phase well prepared for safe ministry. The following are a few principles for making the most of the transition back to business as usual.
Maintain Your Safe Ministry Principles
As we said in our blog on Safe Ministry & COVID-19, your safe ministry principles are always at the core of your safe ministry decisions and practise. They are the why that drives your what; the motivation behind the logistics of practise.
As you moved back into your regular structures or ministries, it’s still important that you are regularly thinking through your safe ministry principles and how you apply them to your circumstances. Similarly to the blog mentioned above, you may need to think about your safe ministry principles as your return to business as usual, but more importantly, as you make changes to the way things might have been done in the past.
Keep Your Insurer in the Loop as You Make Changes
Recently, we published a blog on the relationship you have with your insurer, and why it’s so important. There are probably a lot of things you won’t need to talk with your insurer about. But if you’re making changes to your safe ministry implementation, or need to think through what it might look like at your church if you’re having large changes to the way things are run and need to know your compliance requirements, then it’s always a good idea to ask your insurer whether they have any concerns or advice about what you are doing. It’s not about checking in with them on things like what day to return to your building, or how many people can meet at particular times, but if you’re planning on changing the way you do things like training and screening for volunteers, or are unsure about your safe ministry requirements as you add another staff member to your team, then it’s a good idea to get them involved.
Get Your Training & Screening Done Now
While you have the chance, make sure that as you return to your regular formats for your church and ministry you are up to date with all training and screening. You might choose to do this as a way to help people to mentally prepare for their transition back into regular ministry.
With all of our training online, you’ll easily be able to send out invitations for people to update their training. This will also have safety at the forefront of people’s minds as they return to regular life. We’re currently in a period where a lot of people have become isolated and vulnerable, and having training fresh on the minds of your church members will help them to keep thinking about looking after vulnerable people as restrictions ease.
If you’re unsure about how to make the most of the transition back to your usual ways of running your ministries, feel free to get in touch through our website.
Photo by Jakob Dalbjörn on Unsplash