How To Conduct A Church Security Assessment
Safety and Security Planning
for Places of Worship
UPDATE: Since I developed the document, How to Conduct a Safety and Security Assessment of a Place of Worship, it has been distributed on various sites including this one–and forwarded by many people to other congregations–to well over 5,000 places of worship of all sizes and in all settings. That is very gratifying!
I think one reason for the success of the document–a 95 page manual at this point–is that it presents a balanced view and is adaptable by any church. The price–FREE–is also good!
I’ve been asked several times about other information related to church security and I may develop something else. Time is the key factor, of course. But, if I do that, I’ll put a note on this site about it and let others know as well.
This is the original article I wrote about the document on assessing and it still is worthwhile to read.
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In the last week, since the tragic shooting death of a pastor in a Baptist church in Maryville, Illinois, I have received hundreds of requests for my material on the role of Greeters and Ushers in Church Security. (It puts the request for that document to over 3,000 on my site alone, and many other sites offer it as well. That’s an amazing story all its own.)
I’ve also received many requests to provide training or assistance about conducting assessments in places of worship. This morning I received three phone calls from media sources wanting to know about the consulting I do about church security. I’ve told them all the same thing: I make presentations and provide training about professional and organizational development, and I can help people develop and implement plans of any kind that will be effective. However, I don’t focus solely on church security planning as a business, although there are others who do. For example, Glen Evans is a trainer who has a very useful site at www.churchsecuritymember.com.
My message about security planning is always the same: The people who work in and use a facility are the best ones to assess it, and they can do it without hiring a consultant. It is true that they might need to use some resources to assist their efforts, and certainly an outsider provides some good perspectives. And, I’m not actively discouraging the idea of hiring a trainer or consultant. But, the important thing is to simply look at the church and its events and processes with the eyes of someone who might want to cause harm or create a problem, and consider how to keep that from happening and how to respond if it does happen. It is possible for anyone to do that, just as they can do it for their own homes–and they can probably do it better for their own homes than anyone else could do it.
I’m working, right this moment, on a document that will help church leaders and others effectively assess the safety and security of their places of worship and take action to make it more safe. When it is completed I’ll update this post and send it out to those who have requested the other document on greeters and ushers. In the meantime, those who are reading this can send a request for the new document and as soon as it’s done, I’ll send it. It’s free and I’m happy to provide the information.
In the meantime, I think it’s worthwhile to note that all the security planning in the world could not likely have prevented the situation in Maryville. That doesn’t mean security planning is futile, just that security planning doesn’t make people and places invulnerable. But, it can help limit the harm–as happened in Maryville through quick responses. And, effective planning can prevent crime, injury and disruption simply because of obvious preparedness.
Security planning can be as valuable as the plan, because it raises awareness and helps everyone realize their responsibilities.
Use the contact form to let me know if you want to be put on the list for the free document on how to assess the safety and security of a place of worship.
