4 Ways to Make Your Church Safer

With a variety of safety concerns, how can churches take the next step in providing a safer and more secure place of worship for congregants?

By Tobin Perry

Over the last decade, churches in North America have seen a rising number of high-profile church safety lapses, from tragic shootings to assaults on the church’s most vulnerable.

And it’s hurting the church’s witness.

“When incidents happen that we fail to properly address, it poorly represents our call to protect the vulnerable,” said Buddy Gosey, a former pastor who now serves on the business development team of Safe Hiring Solutions, an Indiana-based church security firm. “In today’s world, that responsibility is under heightened scrutiny. When society at large does a better job responding than the church, it reflects poorly on us as representatives of God’s kingdom. Good intentions are not enough; we will only rise to the level of our safety policies and procedures.”

A recent Lifeway Research survey found over 4 in 5 (81%) Protestant pastors in the United States say their church has some kind of security measures in place. But 1 in 6 (17%) pastors say they don’t use any of the six security measures included in the study (including having armed church members, a plan for active shooter situations, and uniformed police officers on site).

Church security and safety measures can entail everything from caring for minor medical situations such as falls on the church property and kitchen mishaps to sexual abuse prevention and handling active shooter situations.

With such a variety of safety concerns for churches to keep an eye on, how can churches take the next step in providing a safer and more secure place of worship for congregants?

Church safety and security experts have four recommendations to get churches started.

1. Organize a team

Mark LeMay, a church safety trainer for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, encourages pastors to start by organizing a team with the authority to bring recommendations to the church body. He notes that because of recent high-profile active shooter situations at churches, many congregations think if they have a police officer leading security efforts they are fine.

“But they don’t take consideration of all the liabilities that are involved. And they don’t take into consideration what will happen if that one person is gone,” LeMay said. “It’s important to me for it to be ongoing in the church.”

LeMay recommends churches choose a diverse team, particularly ensuring you have women on the team.

“When you start talking safety and security in churches, for some reason, people’s mindsets just go to men,” LeMay said. “It’s important to have proper policies and procedures. A lot of times, women are really good at finding those policies and procedures.”

LeMay also recommends churches include a person with experience in human resources to the team.

Kris Moloney, the owner and program creator for Sheepdog Church Security Academy, recommends starting a new team with a simple task as soon as the following week.

Starting a volunteer team "would increase the level of security at your church immediately, because oftentimes people aren’t paying attention.” — Kris Moloney of Sheepdog Church Security Academy Share on X

“You could have a team next Sunday,” Moloney said. “Theoretically, you get a group of volunteers together and say, ‘We’re going to patrol the church before, during, and after the services. Even though none of us have any training, really, and all we have is cell phones, that’s fine. Our job is to do this: look for anything suspicious. If we see something suspicious, or there’s an emergency, it’s our job to call 911.’ If that’s all you did, you would increase the level of security at your church immediately, because oftentimes people aren’t paying attention.”

2. Conduct thorough safety assessments of your church  

Mike McCarty, the CEO of Safe Hiring Solutions, notes many churches seem to start out chasing technological solutions for safety problems too early in the process. Doing so only costs money and time you don’t need to spend.

“They’re going to spend a lot of money on things that aren’t going to move the needle of safety quickly,” McCarty said. “They need a baseline—here’s where we are today. Here’s what we’re going to start. Here are the things we need to work on.”

McCarty’s organization starts with that assessment. To cut costs for churches, they built software that walks congregations through an assessment themselves, saving the church the money of bringing in an outside consultant for that part of the process. This assessment creates a roadmap for the church to follow as they build their safety plan.

3. Develop a safety plan  

A written-out safety plan helps ensure volunteers can get up to speed quickly and efficiently. Ben Hallmark, a police officer in Evansville, Indiana, who has conducted church active shooter trainings, recommends churches have at least a basic plan of what to do in an emergency.

“We always laugh about having a plan before going into things, but nothing ever goes exactly to plan,” Hallmark said. “The key is to have a basic understanding of options—plan A, B, and C—for different scenarios. Designate someone in charge who can communicate responsibilities so everyone knows their role if something happens. It’s better to have a few likely scenarios covered well than 15 intricate plans you’ll never remember under pressure.”

“It’s better to have a few likely scenarios covered well than 15 intricate plans you’ll never remember under pressure.” — Ben Hallmark, a police officer in Evansville, Indiana Share on X

Moloney suggests churches practice drills of safety situations before writing down plans.

“Don’t try to write your full emergency action plans right away,” Maloney advised. “First, get your team trained in foundational areas. Once they have the basic skills, conduct practice drills for likely scenarios. After you’ve run through simulations successfully, you can codify those procedures into documented emergency action plans.”

Moloney emphasizes the necessity of training before initial documentation.

“By practicing responses first, your plans will accurately capture proven methods rather than untested theories,” Moloney said.

4. Prioritize training and preparedness

Never ask a volunteer to do something they aren’t trained to do, Moloney adds. The more scenarios you can get your team trained in, the more risks you’ll mitigate.

Because many churches are getting older, it’s important churches receive training for medical emergencies.

“While we may not be able to prepare for every medical emergency, it’s essential to have volunteers trained in basic skills like CPR, first aid, and AED [Automated External Defibrillator],” Moloney said. “Heart attacks are the number one killer in America. Even if your church hasn’t experienced one recently, it’s possible someone may suffer one at any time. Is your church prepared to save a life when that happens? Let’s equip teams with the fundamentals so they can respond in those critical moments.”

Hallmark agrees with prioritizing medical emergencies, saying although active shooter situations may get more media attention, churches are more likely to face medical issues such as heart attacks and allergic reactions.

Active shooter situations may get more media attention, churches are more likely to face medical issues such as heart attacks and allergic reactions. Share on X

Verbal de-escalation, Moloney says, is also an important—yet underrated—area for churches to seek training for their safety teams. Whether it’s a disgruntled church member, a protester, or a random stranger in the church, you need a plan for how to ensure a problem gets resolved without becoming more serious.

“We’re seeing more incidents of protesters interrupting church services and yelling at pastors,” Moloney said. “It’s critical to have a plan in place for such disturbances, with people trained in verbal de-escalation skills to engage disruptive individuals. The goal is to keep the situation under control using non-confrontational techniques until law enforcement can arrive and escort the person out. With the proper training and protocols, church teams can safely defuse tense scenarios like this through effective communication and diversion tactics.”

For permission to republish this article, contact Marissa Postell Sullivan.