Developing Program Policies

A policy is defined as a course or method of action selected to guide and determines decisions within your organization in both the present and future.ⁱ At Girls Action we have found that it is important to establish policies based on our learning and practice; this helps to ensure that our policies are relevant and effective.

Questions to consider for policy development:

1. Safety: What policies will need to be implemented to ensure the safety of participants and staff?

2. Liability and legal responsibility: What are your organization’s liabilities and legal responsibilities?

3. Questions of confidentiality: How will you handle confidentiality and disclosure?

4. Questions of participants’ safety: How can you develop and maintain and anti-oppressive space?

5. People: What human resource policies will you need?

The program policies that have been adopted by our girls’ programs are in place to ensure that all expectations are clear, things run smoothly, and the environment is safe. It is critical to have policies that are grounded in the reality of the work we are doing so they can be effectively applied in any and all contexts of our work.

Tips for policy development:

• Learn from other organizations. Don’t be afraid to ask for sample policies for inspiration and to help structure your own policies. Remember that your own policy development will depend on the needs and realities of your own context

• Seek legal advice to gain clarity on legal responsibilities

• Do your homework: understand your organization’s liability and responsibilities

• Seek out provincial and federal guidelines with regards disclosure and legal rights and responsibilities.

Our favourite lesson: You don’t need to overdo policies. They should grow out of the needs of the organization!