| Over the decades, the Boy Scouts of America has been a leader in developing training and policies designed to keep young people safe. These comprehensive policies were considered groundbreaking when they were developed and soon became the standard used by other organizations for safeguarding youth. But when it comes to the safety of children, our goal is to continually improve. Sustained vigilance on youth protection is a central part of our culture. Over the past two years, we have worked with experts in the field of child abuse, child sexual abuse, and maltreatment to develop new training and resources that will further strengthen our ability to protect youth. These changes include: - Fully updated and revised Youth Protection Training developed with leaders in the field of child abuse prevention, including insights from experts and survivors and the latest strategies for recognizing and preventing major forms of abuse. This is the designated Youth Protection Training for all adults.
- Expanded youth protection content across all our communications channels will inform and engage our volunteers and parents.
- An expanded ScoutsFirst Helpline to aid volunteers and families in addressing potentially dangerous situations.
- The BSA also provides unlimited counseling and support for healing to anyone who has ever been abused in Scouting.
- Youth Protection Training for youth members will be available in 2019.
In addition to updated training and resources, we recently announced new policies to ensure compliance with mandatory training requirements, including: - As of January 1, 2018, no new leader can be registered without first completing youth protection training.
- As of January 1, 2018, no council, regional, or national leader will be allowed to renew their registration if they are not current on their Youth Protection Training.
- As of September 1, 2017, no unit may re-charter without all leaders being current on their Youth Protection Training. Registrars no longer have the ability to approve charters without full compliance.
Youth Protection Resources To aid regions, areas, and councils in this rollout, the National Service Center has released to local councils a resource kit that provides a comprehensive overview of the updated training, resources, and policy changes, as well as guidance on how to make youth protection and safety a part of every conversation in Scouting. This represents an evolution in our approach to youth protection and is more than just new training modules. With these changes, we will continue to build a safe environment for our youth. Nothing is more important than the safety of our children. The Boy Scouts of America will not stand by while people take advantage of our trusted program to harm children. Thank you for all you do for our youth and for Scouting! |