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Our Youth Protection Program Commitments
A new Youth Protection Policy was adopted by District 6330 in 2022 to ensure the safety of children and youth participating in Rotary Programs. While many requirements of the District's old "Abuse and Harassment policy" remain, there are some changes to ensure compliance with Rotary International's youth protection standards. In addition to safety and compliance benefits, adherence to the policy supports protection of clubs and members against liability, ensures legal reporting obligations are met, and provides for consistent and supportive incident management.
District Commitments
The District will appoint a District Youth Protection Officer who is responsible for the development and dissemination of youth protection policy and training within the District’s Youth Exchange Program. He or she shall coordinate the efforts of Club Youth Exchange Officers/Counselors or Youth Protection Officers to ensure that youth protection policies and procedures are being followed by Clubs within the District. The District Youth Protection Officer shall work with other RI and District Executive Members in managing the investigation and resolution of complaints of harassment and abuse against youth.
Annually, the District will provide harassment and abuse training to those involved in the District's Youth Exchange Program, including Youth Exchange Officers/Counselors; Inbound students, and Outbound students and parents. (See links on left for most current presentations)
Club Commitments
Clubs offering any programs involving children or youth should have a dedicated Club Youth Protection Officer (YPO) appointed. Some clubs ask the Youth Exchange Officer or Counselor to act in this capacity. Some clubs have extended the role to focus protection on all vulnerable persons (eg disabled, new immigrant, or elderly). The Club YPO is responsible to identify and assess youth programs and ensure compliance with the District policy. A Club Preparation Guideline is available in the Downloads section.
Each year, the club is to be certified by the District YPO by providing a Compliance Agreement with the required program information. The Club will also provide compliance reports as required by the District.
The Club and YPO are responsible to ensure that volunteers working in the child/youth programs undergo the required screening process and participate in the NAYEN training program. Clubs may register volunteers for NAYEN training by completing the Club Compliance Report and NAYEN Training Request and submitting it to Don Moore (dinty@wightman.ca). In addition, the Club will support the attendance of the YEO/YEC and inbound/outbound students at District training programs.
Many of the forms and training materials you will require are in the "downloads" or "links" on the left panel of this page.