Children under the age of ten who are left unattended or appear to be in the facilities without adult supervision can be a cause of concern to the library. Issues of safety, liability, and responsibility motivate the library to address this potentially serious problem. It is the policy of the board of trustees to require that parents, guardians, or other individuals who are responsible for children under the age of ten not leave them unattended in the library.

The following procedure will be used if it is determined that a child is lost or left unattended for more than one half hour:

1. A staff person will notify the supervisor of the day and the security guard that we have a lost or unattended child in the building.
2. The supervisor or the security guard will attempt to locate the parent, guardian, or individual who is responsible for the child within the building through a page on the intercom.
3. If the parent, guardian or responsible party cannot be found in the building, a staff member will stay with the child while the supervisor of the day or the security guard continues to attempt to locate the parents.
4. If the parent, guardian, or person responsible for the child has not been located, or if the library is closing, the supervisor of the day will notify the police.
5. Under no circumstances shall a staff member take the child out of the building.

Adopted 01/25/90; revised 10/07/99, 08/04/05