Child Protection Policy
Protecting God's Children Policy at Our Lady of Loreto
Every Catholic Diocese in the United States is mandated by the National Council of Catholic Bishops to have safe environment programs in place in every parish to assist parents and children in preventing harm to young people.
The Archdiocese of Hartford has instituted a Safe Environment Office in order to be in compliance with the protection of children and young people. The office assists parishes with the process of background checks for church employees and volunteers in parish ministries, and conducting the "Protecting God's Children Awareness Training."
It is, therefore, the policy of Our Lady of Loreto Church that
All Parish employees are required to:
- Have a background check
- Attend a Virtus (Protecting God's Children) Training Session
All Parish volunteers are required to:
- Have a background check
In addition, all Parish volunteers over the age of 18, who in their ministry have regular contact with children, the elderly, and the handicapped are required to:
- Attend a Virtus (Protecting God's Children) Training Session
No Parishioner will be able to volunteer in any Ministry at Our Lady of Loreto Church before having a background check and attend a Virtus training session. The Archdiocese of Hartford requires us to post Protecting God's Children Policy in our bulletin quarterly to keep our Parishioners informed.