A VBS waiver form is the combined registration and consent document a church asks parents to sign before their child attends Vacation Bible School. To fill one out correctly, you’ll need your child’s identification and medical details, two emergency contacts, your health insurance information, a list of people authorized to pick your child up, and about ten minutes to read the liability release and photo permission sections before signing. The sections below walk through each part of the form in the order you’ll encounter it.
What to Pull Together Before You Start
Most parents stall partway through because they’re missing a policy number or a phone number. Have these ready before you sit down:
- Your child’s full legal name, date of birth, grade completed, and home address.
- Parent or guardian home, cell, and work numbers, plus an email address.
- At least two emergency contacts with phone numbers and their relationship to your child.
- Names of every person allowed to pick your child up at dismissal.
- Health insurance carrier, policy number, and your child’s primary care doctor.
- Allergies, chronic conditions, current medications and dosages, and any dietary or physical limitations.
The medical section is where most parents slow down, and it’s worth the time. “Allergic to tree nuts” tells a volunteer something useful; “food allergies” does not. If your child uses an EpiPen or inhaler, note whether they self-administer or need an adult’s help, and include the dosage and timing. The volunteers running VBS aren’t medical professionals, so written instructions carry more weight here than they would in a doctor’s office.
Your family’s health insurance information appears on the form because any church coverage typically acts as secondary — your insurance is billed first if your child needs emergency treatment, and the church’s policy covers whatever remains. Having your policy number on file prevents billing delays.
Registration Fields People Rush Through
The top of the form covers basic identification: name, birthdate, address, grade, and parent or guardian names. Fill in every field even when it feels redundant. Some churches reject forms with any blank required fields, and a half-completed form can delay or block your child’s spot.
The pickup authorization list deserves real thought. Anyone not on it will typically be turned away at dismissal. If both parents share custody and either might show up, list both. Add carpool drivers, a grandparent, or a neighbor who might step in on short notice. It’s easier to put names on now than to call the office midweek trying to add one.
For emergency contacts, pick people who are local, actually answer their phones, and ideally know about your child’s medical needs. A relative three time zones away isn’t the right choice here. These are the people the church calls when they can’t reach you.
What You’re Agreeing to in the Liability Release
The dense paragraph most parents skim is the legal heart of the form. By signing it, you agree not to hold the church, its staff, or its volunteers financially responsible for accidental injuries your child sustains during VBS. The release usually covers everything on church property, and if the program includes field trips or transportation, those too.
A standard release applies to ordinary negligence: a tripped relay racer, a scraped knee, a collision in the hallway. The church isn’t promising a risk-free environment, and you’re acknowledging that when you sign.
What a waiver generally does not cover is gross negligence or intentional harm. If an organization ignores an obvious hazard, fails to supervise children in a dangerous situation, or a staff member acts recklessly, courts routinely refuse to enforce waivers that try to shield the organization from that level of fault. Roughly half of all states will not enforce a liability waiver a parent signs on behalf of a minor at all, treating parental waivers as contrary to public policy protecting a child’s independent legal rights. In states that do enforce them, courts read the language narrowly.
None of that is a reason to refuse to sign. The release is standard in youth programming from church camps to soccer leagues. Signing documents that you were told about the risks and understood what your child would be doing; it does not erase every legal remedy if something goes seriously wrong.
Medical Treatment Authorization
Separate from the liability release is a medical treatment authorization. This gives the church permission to call paramedics, consent to emergency hospital treatment, and allow transport if your child is hurt or becomes ill and staff can’t reach you in time. Without it, emergency responders may face delays treating a minor.
The authorization is narrow. It covers the gap between when an emergency happens and when a parent arrives or picks up the phone, not long-term medical decisions. If your child has a medication interaction, an allergy to common anesthetics, or a “do not” instruction for a particular procedure, write it into the medical section. Paramedics and ER staff will work from whatever the church hands them.
Photo and Video Permission
Most forms include a section giving the church permission to photograph or film your child for newsletters, social media, websites, and next year’s promotional materials. Many forms let you decline without affecting enrollment, usually through a checkbox or a “circle one” option. Some handle it as a line you cross out and initial.
If there’s no obvious opt-out and you’d rather your child not appear in promotional material, contact the coordinator before the deadline. Most churches will accommodate the request, sometimes with a colored wristband or sticker so volunteer photographers know to keep your child out of frame. If you do grant permission, keep in mind that once images are posted or printed, pulling them back is difficult. You can ask the church to take photos down later, but a signed blanket release doesn’t obligate them to.
Who Has Authority to Sign
A child’s legal parents, biological or adoptive, can sign a waiver and consent form on the child’s behalf. Either parent can sign individually unless the form explicitly requires both signatures.
Grandparents, stepparents, and other relatives generally cannot sign unless they hold legal guardianship or have been granted authority through a power of attorney or caregiver authorization document. If a non-parent is handling the registration, ask the coordinator what documentation they need. Some churches are flexible; others follow their insurance carrier’s rules to the letter and will reject a form signed by anyone who isn’t a legal parent or court-appointed guardian. If a court has appointed a guardian, bring a copy of the order in case the church asks to see it.
Signing on Paper or Electronically
Many churches now run VBS registration through online platforms with electronic signatures. Federal law treats an electronic signature as legally equivalent to a handwritten one for this type of consent.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 7001 – General Rule of Validity An electronic signature can be a typed name, a finger-drawn signature on a touchscreen, or a confirmation checkbox.
For paper forms, sign in ink with your legal name. A small number of churches, usually at the direction of their insurance carrier, ask for a witness signature or notary acknowledgment. Unless the form specifically says notarization is required, you don’t need one. Before you turn the form in, flip through every page. A missing signature, wrong date, or blank required field can bounce the whole packet back and keep your child out on day one.
Submitting the Form and Confirming It Was Received
Churches generally accept forms through an online registration portal, by email with a scanned copy or clear photo of the signed paper form, or hand-delivered to the church office. Whichever route you use, confirm receipt. Online platforms should produce an email or on-screen acknowledgment. For a hand-delivered copy, ask for a quick email confirmation. Forms do get misplaced, and finding out the morning VBS starts is a bad surprise.
Most churches set a registration deadline at least a week before VBS begins. That window lets coordinators review medical disclosures, order supplies, pair volunteers with children who have specific needs, and fix problems with incomplete forms. Submitting early gives you a buffer if the registration team flags something, like a missing emergency contact or an unclear allergy instruction.
How Long the Church Keeps Your Form
Churches and nonprofits typically hold onto waiver and registration forms for several years after the program ends. In most states, a minor’s statute of limitations for personal injury claims doesn’t start running until the child turns 18, so a child injured at age seven could theoretically file a claim more than a decade later. Organizations retain signed waivers to protect themselves in that scenario.
Expect the church to store the form, including medical details and emergency contacts, for roughly three to seven years, and sometimes longer depending on how young your child was at the time. Paper forms should be in locked storage and digital submissions in access-controlled systems. If you want your child’s information deleted after VBS wraps, ask the coordinator about the church’s retention policy and whether early removal is possible once the relevant window closes.