Promoting a Safer Church
St Guthlac’s Church Safeguarding Policy for Children, Young People and Vulnerable Adults
On this page you will find policies and documents relating to safeguarding as well as contact details for various organisations.
At St Guthlac’s we believe the protection of children, young people and vulnerable adults involved in our activities is the responsibility of our whole church. It is important therefore that everyone who participates in the life of our church must play their part in promoting a safer church for all.
This document sets out our safeguarding policy for children, young people and vulnerable adults. It is based on the good practice advice set out in the Church of England’s own guidance (also called Promoting a Safer Church) which was produced by the church’s National Safeguarding Team. This and other guidance
from Leicester Diocese can be found on the Leicester Diocesan website on the Safeguarding Help for Parishes page.
The policy ensures that we meet our duties under Section 5 of the
Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure 2016 to have ‘due regard’ to the safeguarding policy and practice guidance issued by the House of Bishops and of its core principles:
The welfare of the child, young person and vulnerable adult is paramount;
Integrity, respect and listening to all;
Transparency and openness;
Accountability;
Collaboration with key statutory bodies and other partners;
Use of professional safeguarding advice and support both inside and outside the Church;
A commitment to the prevention of abuse;
The active management of risk;
Promoting a culture of informed vigilance;
Regular evaluation to ensure best practice.
By applying this policy we will seek to promote the welfare of children, young persons and adults, work to prevent abuse from occurring, protect all at risk of being abused and respond well to anyone that has been abused. We will take care to identify where a person may present a risk to others and offer support
to them whilst taking steps to mitigate such risks. In practice this will be by:
- Promoting a safer environment and culture.
- Safely recruiting and supporting all those within the church with
responsibilities towards children, young persons or vulnerable adults. - Responding promptly to every safeguarding concern, incident or
allegation.
· Caring pastorally for victims of abuse and other affected persons.
· Caring pastorally for those who are the subject of concerns or allegations
of abuse and other affected persons, whilst protecting potential victims of abuse.
· Responding appropriately to those that may pose a present risk to others.
We will adopt an action plan to ensure that our safeguarding policy is put into action and reviewed regularly.
The PCC have appointed Anne Hunt as Parish Safeguarding Officer to advise them on safeguarding issues, to act as link between the Parish and the Diocese on all safeguarding issues and to oversee the operation of the safeguarding policy and action plan.
If you have an immediate concern about the welfare of a child, young person or vulnerable adult, please do not delay in contacting our Parish Safeguarding Co-ordinator: Anne Hunt email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or our minister, Revd Adrian Jones, 0116 270 4268 and This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The Diocesan Safeguarding Officer is Rachael Spiers : 0116 261 6341 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
We believe that safeguarding our children, young people and vulnerable adults is a key part of our ministry here at St Guthlac’s. Recent statutory reports and independent reviews into abuse that have involved the Church of England and other faith organisations highlight past errors and significant lessons to be leant to improve safeguarding. As a Church we have an obligation to make every effort to ensure such a situation should never be allowed to occur again.
We are all called to share the good news of God’s salvation through Jesus Christ. The good news speaks of welcome for all, with a particular regard for those who are most vulnerable, into a community where the value and dignity of every human being is affirmed and those in positions of responsibility and authority are truly trustworthy. Being faithful to our call to share the gospel
therefore compels us to take with the utmost seriousness the challenge of preventing abuse from happening and responding well when it has.
The National/Parish Safeguarding Handbook can be downloaded here
POLICIES
St. Guthlac’s PCC