Monthly Newsletter
August 2019
IN THIS ISSUE

  • Introduction: Choosing to Love
  • From our Blog: Preventing tragic mistakes
  • FAQ: Reporting Suspected Abuse
  • August Special: Background Checks
  • Complimentary Webinar: Plan to Protect® for Schools
  • Upcoming Trainings and Certification
  • Plan to Protect® App - NEW PRICE
  • Video Teaser: Online Certification
  • Announcements: Introducing our New Director of Training
Unable to attend last month's Special Interest Webinar , Progressive Steps of Discipline ? Purchase the recording on our online school today! This webinar is chock-full of good information on managing staff and volunteers. You won't want to miss out on this one!

If you are interested in becoming a Plan to Protect® member , now is a great time. Members can register at no cost for monthly Special Interest Webinars, as well as get access to past editions, in the Member Section of the website.
Choosing to Love
As we travel in Canada and the United States, we hear individuals share why they are reluctant to call and report child abuse. I once asked a victim of child abuse what was the one thing they really want organizations to know that are striving to implement abuse prevention. The answer that comes up the most often is: Please tell them to report allegations, suspicions, and disclosures of abuse to law enforcement and Child and Family Services.  

Over and over I hear people voice concern that they are reluctant to report abuse. When asked why, the answers range from:
  • What if I am wrong?
  • What if I cause more problems? 
  • What if I get in trouble for reporting? 
  • What if they don’t take me seriously?
  • What if they take the child away from the parent? 
  • What if I hurt my relationship with the parents? 

When we examine the reasons why people are reluctant to report abuse we see that “fear” is the driving factor. The reasons why we should report abuse to law enforcement and child and family services, are based on “love”:
  • We want to protect the child!
  • We want to break the cycle of abuse!
  • We want to do what is right!
  • We want to protect other children!
  • We want the healing process to begin!
  • We want to protect the organization!
May we choose to love.

If you are committed to creating a ministry or program of protection, there will be a time you will need to report a suspicion, disclosure or allegation of child abuse. So often though we are reluctant because we have heard stories where the reporting was mismanaged. Yes with any type of organization where the “human factor” is involved, things can get derailed. I have had to remind teachers that there is a lot of educator abuse, remind churches that we have been slow to prevent abuse from occurring and making child protection a priority, remind camps that they haven’t set parameters for camp counsellors once they leave camp, remind coaches that child abuse has been rampant in the sporting industry. Yes, and even child protection agencies have fallen short of protecting children at times.  

The UNITED NATIONS RIGHTS OF A CHILD call for parents, community partners and agencies to all make child protection a priority. We all have a part to play in protecting the vulnerable sector.
The Latest from Our Blog
Preventing tragic mistakes

There is plenty of talk about the risk of getting vehicular heatstroke, particularly in July and August. While the vast majority know not to leave children, vulnerable adults or pets unattended in the car, history tells us that it can and does happen – and knowing may not have anything to do with it.
 
This week, we followed the heart-wrenching story of Juan Rodriguez, a loving father whose tragic mistake cost the lives of two of his children.
 
Rodriguez, his wife and their three children live in Rockland County, N.Y. Rodriguez works as a social worker at a veterans’ hospital. On his way to work, he dropped off his four-year-old at nursery school. He arrived at work in the Bronx at 8 a.m. and put in a full shift of counselling. 
 
It wasn’t until he was on his way home at 4 p.m. that he saw his one-year-old twins strapped in rear-facing car seats, no longer breathing.
 
“I blanked out,” he told the police when they arrived on scene, the New York Times reported. “I killed my babies.” Juan Rodriguez was charged with two counts each of manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, and endangering the welfare of a child.
 
Wracked with grief and guilt, the heartbroken father struggled to understand how he could have forgotten to drop them off at daycare before heading to work. How did he have such a significant memory lapse? How could he have forgotten his own children?
New This Month
You Asked...

Q: How do I determine reasonable grounds for reporting suspected abuse to the Department of Social Services?

(Question 7a of our Frequently Asked Questions).

August Special
Criminal Record Checks

Are you considering Plan to Protect ® ScreeningCanada, Canada’s platform for screening? There is no better time to start to screen your volunteers on our platform.

This month, process 5 Criminal Record Checks on the Plan to Protect ® ScreeningCanada platform and receive the 6th free ($33 value).

For more information, reach out to Lynda at  info@plantoprotect.com.
Conditions apply. Criminal Record Checks must be processed on the Plan to Protect ® ScreeningCanada platform. They must be processed during the month of August. For every 5 criminal record checks invoiced, the 6 th  check will be reflected on your invoice as free. Must be organization paid.
Training Highlights
Plan to Protect ® for Schools
Complimentary Webinar

How can we create a safe environment at school? Who should we screen? What policies should be put in place? Let’s Plan to Protect ® schools! This webinar is designed for principals, vice-principals, teachers, board members and parents.

Do you know a school that needs Plan to Protect ® ? Refer them today and encourage them to join this useful webinar.

FREE
Plan to Protect ® Orientation LIVE

Join us for this 2-hour orientation training covering awareness of abuse, our responsibility, definitions of abuse with potential recognition signals, reporting and response, and child and youth protection procedures. This training meets insurance company requirements. Designed for staff and volunteers working with children, youth and vulnerable adults.

$30+tax per person
Upcoming Plan to Protect ® Trainings and Certification

To learn more or to register, click the name of the training.

Click  here  for the full 2019 training calendar.
 August 21, 2019 @ 12:00pm-1:00pm ET

August 21, 2019 @ 7:30pm-9:00pm ET

August 22, 2019 @ 12:30pm-1:00pm ET

August 24, 2019 @ 1:00pm-3:30pm ET

Online, self-paced. Start now!
There's an App for That


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Certification Training

Want to learn more about our online certification courses? Check out this promo for our Train the Trainer Level 1 course.

Ready to register? Click HERE to get started.
Welcoming Our New Director of Training
This month, we are welcoming Taylor Scott-Reimer to our team as the new Director of Training.

Prior to joining Plan to Protect ® in August 2019, Taylor worked in Youth Ministry at a large Anglican parish in Toronto and as Camp Director for day-camp programs around the Greater Toronto Area. Taylor holds an honours Bachelor of Arts in English from Tyndale University.

She is passionate about the safety of vulnerable sectors. Taylor and her husband enjoy cooking new recipes together and spending time with their dog Artemis!

Welcome to the team, Taylor!!