Overnight Activities
Overnight stays present unique risks to youth and staff. They often involve changing clothes, groups of both genders, and different ages in a more intimate atmosphere than usual, more unstructured activities, and increased supervision demands for staff.
Supervision Guidelines:
a. All overnight activities must be documented and approved in writing by the Executive Director.
b. The ED should appoint a “lead” staff to supervise the overnight activity. A meeting with all staff is conducted to discuss the unique risks of overnight trips, unique elements of the specific overnight trip and to review the specific policies and procedures.
c. Provide parents with written information about the overnight activity. All parents must sign a permission slip for their youth to attend the overnight.
d. Determine the appropriate staff-to-youth ratios before the event and schedule staff accordingly.
e. Meetings with the group should be hosted in open and observable areas; meetings should not be hosted in staff or youth rooms.
Overnights at the Facility:
a. Physical boundaries within the organization must be clearly defined and explained to the youth.
b. Assign each staff to a specific group of youth to supervise. Each staff should then maintain a role sheet that lists all of the youth in his or her group. Head counts and roll checks should be conducted routinely throughout the evening.
c. Assign staff to high risk areas in your organization’s facility, such as the bathrooms, entrances and exits, hallways, etc. If it is not possible to assign specific staff to these areas, assign specific staff to conduct periodic facility “walk-throughs”.
d. With regards to sleeping arrangements, separate the male and female youth into separate rooms and post staff at the entrances and exits to these rooms. If this is not feasible, separate males and females by as much space as possible.
e. When performing room checks, staff should always go in pairs.
f. At least one staff member must stay awake overnight.
Overnights Away from the Facility:
a. Overnight stays at private homes are prohibited unless approved by the YMCA.
b. Physical boundaries at the off-site location must be clearly defined and explained to the youth.
c. Assign each staff to a specific group of youth to supervise. Each staff member should then maintain a role sheet that lists all of the youth in his or her group. Head counts and roll checks should be conducted routinely throughout the event.
d. If in a cabin type setting, the staff should be placed in bunks to maximize supervision around the cabin and in a way that decreases the chances of youth sneaking out (such as by the door).
e. In hotel rooms, assign youth to rooms based on gender and age. Staff should have their own rooms. If staff must share rooms with youth, they must have their own beds and never change in front of youth.
f. All staff are to be on duty in the halls or cabins at night until an hour after lights out and all rooms are quiet.
Index: M16