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Child Protection and Safeguarding

 

The Church of England is committed to the safeguarding, care and nurture of the children within our church community.

 

We take this issue extremely seriously, and continue to seek to enhance our procedures through the House of Bishops' commitment to diocesan and national guidelines for safeguarding children, and improving the care for survivors of abuse.

 

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, was interviewed on BBC R4's Today Programme in May 2007 about how the Church of England responded to some high-profile cases of abuse, and the Church's plans for new guidance for dioceses on reviewing 'historic' cases.

 

The protocol, approved by the House of Bishops to assist dioceses in implementing the review of past child protection cases, is available here (PDF file size 248kb, may take some time to download on slow connections, Rich Text File version available here at 315kb).

 

The House of Bishops produced its first child protection policy document in 1995, in response to the Home Office’s 1993 document Safe from Harm. This policy was later revised in 1999 and then again in 2004. The policy is in place to protect not only children and young people, but also those adults who are committed to working with and for them.

Read more about the Church's child protection policy.

Read the Church of England's full Child Protection Policy, Protecting All God's Children.

 

Adult Safeguarding

 

The Church of England is committed to encouraging an environment where all people and especially those who may be vulnerable for any reason are able to worship and pursue their faith journey with encouragement and in safety. Everyone, whether they see themselves as vulnerable or not, will receive respectful pastoral ministry recognizing any power imbalance within such a relationship.

Read more about the Church's adult safeguarding policy.

Read the Church of England's full Adult Safeguarding Policy, Promoting a Safe Church.

 

If you represent a parish church and would like further advice on these topics, then contact your Diocesan Child Protection Officer through your Diocesan Office or Pearl Luxon, National Safeguarding Officer. Pearl Luxon can be contacted on (telephone) 0207 467 5189, or email safeguarding@methodistchurch.org.uk.