Children's ministry & Sunday school Risk Assessment Template

Typical hazards & measures

• Stairs, ramps and transitions — Plan escorted routes between worship and rooms; assign front and rear marshals, and use handrails. Split groups on stairs, limit carrying while moving, and keep doors held open. Pause at landings for headcounts, and brief children to walk in pairs without running or pushing.
• Unauthorized access to children’s areas — Control entry with staffed check-point, visible badges for team, and closed doors during sessions. Challenge unknown adults politely, and restrict sight-lines into rooms using blinds where needed. Keep a visitors log and ensure external doors are secured without blocking egress.
• Missing child response — Lock down exits if safe, alert safeguarding lead, and search agreed zones with assigned roles. Call parents and police if not found promptly. Keep recent registers, photos if consented, and a map of likely hiding places. Pause external doors until the child is located.
• Communicable illness in groups — Ask parents to keep unwell children at home; follow exclusion timings for vomiting/diarrhoea. Provide handwashing on arrival, clean high-touch points, and ventilate rooms. Offer alternatives for shared items, and inform parents of exposures while protecting confidentiality.
• Registration and collection procedures — Operate pre-registration and sign-in/out with photo ID checks, record attendance and contact details, and issue pickup tokens. Brief volunteers on authorised collectors, hold children in the room until verified, and escalate to the safeguarding lead if a mismatch occurs.