1. Visitation supervision services do not constitute therapy, counseling or any other professionally licensed activity. For this reason, any records generated by KS staff arising from visitation supervision is not confidential under the law. I hereby release KS staff to make copies of any and all of these records for the other parent, his or her attorney, the courts, CPS or other representative.
2. KS staff members are mandatory reporters of suspected abuse, and serious threats to do harm against others, if we are concerned we will make a report, we are not investigators however, we are observers and will report what we observed and let the investigators do their work. KS works with all clients including sexual abuse case referrals.
3. KS cannot begin or continue a supervised visit if either party knows or has outstanding arrest warrants against them until it has been determined it is safe to begin or continue visits.
4. It is the policy of KS that there will be no contact between the custodial and visiting parents while on, or within, walking distance of KS property before, during, or after a visit. Always use the parking area and follow the requirements for the visit arriving and departing on schedule.
5. KS staff shall not act as a go-between on any adult matters that are pertinent to their KS role. KS will only transfer the following child related information: health information, medicine and favorite toy/food.
6. Scheduled visitations or exchanges at KS may not be used by either party as an opportunity to serve legal papers.
7. Visitation staff and parents will not talk about any aspect of the case/situation in front of the child
8. All clients are self-pay; payment for service will be paid directly to KS in the form of cash, money order, cashier’s check or credit card a minimum of 7day before the visit.
9. All scheduling must be completed by 5:00 PM the week prior for visitation planned for the following week (Exception for Holiday closures). For weekend visitation it is required that Saturday and Sunday visits are arranged no later than Friday the week prior, with payment made a week in advance. It is the responsibility of the parents to contact Supervised Visitation to arrange a visit.
10. We have a no-tolerance policy to lice and their nits in hair. Visitation Staff reserve the right to check a child’s hair if they have reason to believe the child has lice. Visit will be immediately canceled upon the discovery of lice and nits in a child’s hair for the safety of other children and their family
11. In consideration of the visitation supervision services, parents agree to release KS, its employees, agents, officers and directors from any and all claims arising there from, excepting only those arising from intentional malfeasance. This release covers specifically, but is not limited to, claims arising from a visiting parent’s departure with the minor child/children from agreed upon visiting site. KS staff cannot, and will not, attempt to physically prevent the visiting parent from leaving with the child/children. KS staff will call the police immediately if a threat of this nature occurs.
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
BEFORE THE VISIT
1. Punctuality is very important. Anyone tardy to visits or pickups will be charged accordingly by the minute. Tardiness is reported to the court, and repeated violations will result in termination of visits.
a. If the entry door is locked, do not try another entry. Staff will come at the appointed time to open the door and let you in for your visit, we are mindful of the safety and security of all here.
b. The visiting parent must arrive 15 minutes before the scheduled visitation time and remain until the Supervising Monitor excuses you to leave. A visiting parent who is late will have a fee imposed and/or the visit canceled. For exchange, whoever does not have the child arrive 15 minutes early.
c. The Custodial parent is to arrive no earlier than 5 minutes before the scheduled visitation time.
d. If either parent is late these are the amounts that will be charged: 5 minutes or less $10; 5 – 10 minutes $18: 11 – 16 minutes $25. More than 17 minutes late, no further visits are scheduled until the case is referred back to court
e. A parent is considered late when they arrive any time after a scheduled visit. When you are 15 minutes late the visit is canceled. If the waiting parent wishes to complete the visit past the 15 minute cut-off then staff will accommodate to the end of the original scheduled time.
2. To cancel visit/exchanges contact the Visitation Supervisor at least 48 hours prior to visit. All cancellations by either party made with less than 48 hours notice will be billed at full price to the canceling party
3. Approval from the Visitation Supervisor, Custodial Parent and Child must be given for immediate family members to have their own separate visit or they must be included on the Court papers authorizing the visit
4 Failure to meet the requirements of other programs ordered by the court may result in suspension of visits
5 Gum, use, Tobacco use and weapons are not permitted on the premises including the entire physical property. Anyone entering KS premises may be subject to a search of their person and parcels to ensure they are unarmed.
6 Peanuts: due to the frequency and danger of Peanut allergies NO peanuts or peanut products are allowed on KS property. If your child is allergic to peanuts please note this on your Health Form for your child. The EPI Pen must be brought to the visit EACH time and placed in the FIRST AID kit on the wall of the waiting room. Failure to bring the EPI Pen to the visit will automatically cancel the visit and the full charge will be incurred by the Custodial parent for the cancellation and another visit will be scheduled for that week to comply with the visit schedule. You may permanently leave an EPI pen at KS with your child’s name on it in the kit or cupboard.
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
DURING THE VISIT
1. Cellular phone usage will not be allowed during the visit. Phones must be left in your vehicle or turned off and place them in the basket designated for them in the room along with your car keys
2. NO photos will be allowed during visitation. No audio and video taping will be allowed. KS staff will not take pictures for you during the visit. Only pictures of the children provided by the visiting parent are allowed to be brought to the visit. No pictures are allowed to go home with the child unless it is a photograph of only the child. If you wish to take photos, a request form must be submitted
3. Termination: KS Visitation Attendants/Supervisor has the authority to immediately terminate a visit/exchange in the event she/he believes it to be in the best interest of the child (ren) to do so. The decision is final, immediate, and nonnegotiable; a report will be submitted to the court.
4. The Monitor/Supervisor will document observations of the visit but will not make any judgments regarding the quality of the interactions or about the effects of the contact between parent and child. It is the sole responsibility of the visiting parent to parent their child(ren) in all aspect of this role, including: diaper changing, toileting issues, discipline, feeding, reading, picking up toys, playing with them and interacting
5. You are responsible to interact appropriately with each child during the visit based on their age and level of functioning.
6. Staff members are not your friends, confident or helper, we are here to monitor and report on your behavior and interactions with your child (ren) while at KS. Do not solicit personal information from staff or attempt to engage in discussions with them before, during or after your visit. Your conversation and discussion will be recorded in the Observation Notes.
7. Animals: Please inform the staff of any animal allergies your child may have
8. Gifts: Must be approved two weeks prior to the visit by the Custodial Parent and KS program. The Gift Form must be completed and submitted to KS staff allowing for the two week time period for processing. Gifts are allowed to be given to the children on their birthday and celebrated holidays. You may ask the visitation staff for clarification on your specific case. An answer may not be immediately forthcoming depending up on court documents and the Custodial Parent input
9. A maximum of $100 cash or cash card may be given per child in a visit
10. We do not transfer child support payments or other paperwork between parents during visits.
POLICIES & PROCEDURES
AFTER THE VISIT
1. If there is a Restraining or Protective Order in effect and the visiting parent leaves before being excused, the court will be notified of their violation of the Restraining Order
2. Visiting Parents are responsible for restoring the visitation room to its original condition (pick up toys, clean off surfaces, wipe off table, pick up and throw away trash etc.) Financial costs for damage done to KS property due to a parent failing to properly supervise or parent their child will be the sole responsibility of that parent
3. All written reports, letters, and conversations with attorneys, therapists, or others regarding this case and in excess of 15 minutes will be billed to that agency or to the related parent at a prorated rate of $60 per hour
4. If either parent requests copies of visitation notes or request notes to be sent to other parties – they will be charged a fee. This fee must be paid in cash before the copies are made for them to take or sent to other
5. Billing: We do not engage in billing or providing you with a statement, you are paying for services in advance of obtaining them. We will provide you with a printed list of the fees you have paid for the visits and any additional charges you have accrued while working with KS
6. Following the visit you may schedule your next visit and make your payment for this visit before leaving. You may also make your payment online through PayPal. We do not have the ability to make change so please bring the exact amount for the visit and also any additional amount for notes, reports or conferences.
7. We are not providing therapy, counseling or parent training nor do we provide crisis counseling following a visit. If you have concerns about behavior or statements that have occurred in the session, you may request the notes and speak with your attorney and return to court. We take seriously any threats, grooming and exploitation of the children and will act promptly to protect them in sessions.
8. Lengthy and frequent phone calls or emails following a visitation will be billed at the conference fee rate and you may be referred to therapy, counseling, mediation or returned to court for additional assistance. We are not able to mediate difference between you and the other party
9. Our policy is to hold our communication with parents through emails – fees are at a reduced rate based upon e-mail rather than phone calls. We only use text messaging for emergency issues. We do not communicate typically through our cell phones: E-mail allows us to share the same information with both parties and provides a document trail for any confusion or questions at a later date. Care will be taken to keep parent e-mail addresses confidential from the other parent.