Recognising the need to embed a culture of safeguarding at all levels of the diocese, our safeguarding team and leadership are rolling out new training and resources for Parish Safeguarding OfficersThe recent publication of the Makin Report and ongoing allegations about safeguarding failures at senior levels of Church of England hierarchy remind us all about the serious and lasting damage experienced by victims and survivors of abuse, and their bravery in coming forward. It makes it even more urgent to embed a culture of safeguarding at all levels within our diocese. Our senior leadership and safeguarding team are rolling out new resources to provide ongoing support to our Parish Safeguarding Officers, in recognition of their enormous responsibilities and the important and selfless work they do. As Parish Safeguarding Officers have shared with us below, it takes a cultural shift to move towards a system where good safeguarding practice minimises risk. A combination of in-person support from the diocese safeguarding team, diocesan and national systems, and technology is needed to achieve this cultural change, as explained by Diocesan Safeguarding Officer Carl Steventon and Assistant Diocesan Safeguarding Officer Lisa Anderson, both former police officers.
Says Lisa, “Many PSOs have very busy working and home lives, so, as you can see, this is a lot of responsibility to take on.” She continues, “The diocese absolutely could not manage safeguarding without the commitment of our volunteer PSOs, they are indispensable. This makes it even more important to support them in their role, and let people know where safeguarding is working well – which is at parish level. People are being well-served by their PSOs and we have a lot to thank them for.”
Continues Carl, “Parish Safeguarding Officers are working their socks off to make sure their parishes are safe. They are our feet on the ground creating a cultural shift in parishes, where safeguarding has to be a constant background theme. Our job is to support them and equip them for that role and make sure they feel appreciated and valued for their work. Over the coming year we will be rolling out a new Induction programme to do just that.”
With some 400 churches and almost as many parishes, the diocese has a huge army of volunteer Parish Safeguarding Officers (PSOs), shouldering a lot of responsibility on behalf of their churches, including:
• Helping to coordinate appropriate safeguarding training for volunteers
• Gate-keeping any safeguarding concerns raised in the parish
• Promoting safeguarding in a positive way through parish websites, noticeboards and magazines
• Producing an annual safeguarding plan for the parish APCM
• Reporting on safeguarding at every PCC meeting
• Managing safer recruitment for volunteers involved with children, young people and vulnerable adults including DBS checks and updates where required
• Attending all necessary PSO trainings
• Remaining in regular contact with the diocesan safeguarding team
Carl continues, “In Hereford Diocese there is no blockage in reporting mechanisms at the parish level, or into the central diocesan team. Our local safeguarding follows the national model, common to all dioceses, the national policies and procedures and the same training content. But in such a rural diocese as ours, with one of the highest ratios of churches per capita in England, we are even more reliant on our PSOs to deliver this culture shift. In these circumstances, we have to balance the use of technology - which can deliver content and guidance at the scale we need - with in-person support.”
As Carl says, “Technology is increasingly important. Our website is a vital aspect of managing safeguarding across the diocese, where we just can’t be everywhere. One of our goals this year is to make our website more ‘self-service’ so that PSOs and others with safeguarding responsibilities can find answers for many situations, and access training and other requirements.”
Technology alone cannot change culture, however. In-person support, from the central diocesan team and within parishes and deaneries, is vital. Carl goes on, “We recognise people need support with their responsibilities and to shift the culture. Good, in-person training helps with that, so we will be offering more group trainings around the diocese, for new PSOs and refreshers for existing PSOs, in Hereford, Ludlow and Church Stretton. The first three dates for in-person PSO Induction sessions have been announced for Ludlow and can be found below. Additional dates for Hereford and Church Stretton are on the way. We also have some fantastic PSOs working at deanery and benefice level, helping to coordinate training and other safeguarding issues within their parishes, and coming up with innovative ways to make it work.”
For example, in Leominster, former educator Ceri Hibbert has set up a WhatsApp group for PSOs, and invited PSOs from across Leominster team’s ministry area to meet with the diocesan safeguarding team, all of which has helped to share the load and share advice about what’s working and how to handle the responsibilities. She says, “At the Priory, for example, we have a large junior choir which means extra safeguarding needs for the children. Whereas in the past, the assumption might have been to trust implicitly anyone engaged in ‘good work’, the culture shift means putting safeguards in place to minimise risk. For the choir, this means volunteer chaperones, recruited through safer recruitment practices, including DBS checks and safeguarding training.” Continues Ceri, “In terms of culture that means being alert to risks, keeping our eyes open, not allowing people to take photographs, waiting with a child who is waiting to be picked up. Sometimes it means having uncomfortable conversations but the training helps with this. The WhatsApp group is a forum for PSOs to get questions answered, and for people who don’t use WhatsApp we share the same information by group email. In-person support is also important. With my background in education, I am used to delivering training when PCC members do not feel comfortable with the technology. Working through it in a group, with people they know, really helps. We need to bring people along with us, by whatever means works, if we’re really going to change the culture and continue to keep people safe. It’s a continuous journey.”
In Stretton Parish, a group of three churches in Shropshire, PSO Chrissie Pepler agrees that changing the culture is an ongoing journey. “Things have been done a certain way for a long time. We have over 70 volunteers in our parish, so using safer recruitment systems, including training and DBS checks and more, is very important. But it’s also about turning safeguarding into a cultural norm, where it is everyone’s responsibility. Coming from a social work background, this is second nature to me, but it’s not – yet – for everyone, so we need to bring them along. It’s a mind-shift from a place of pure trust. The diocese and national church systems underpin this work, and the back-up support from the diocese team helps PSOs to share good practice. There’s a lot of detail, and you can feel quite isolated, so the personal connection is really important.”
In the Border Link parishes, former GP Jeremy Vevers is the PSO across much of the benefice. With such a wide remit, he has had to innovate and he too has set up a WhatsApp group for the benefice, “used for only the most urgent communications.” He also works with the deanery administrator to keep track of DBS checks and safeguarding training, including renewal dates. Like other PSOs, he faces challenges getting some less tech-savvy PCC members to complete their basic online safeguarding training modules or to sign up for DBS checks. “The revelations of the Makin Report have been profoundly shocking for our parishioners and PCCs,” says Jeremy. He agrees that regular in-person PSO meetings with the central safeguarding team would be helpful, where ideas and updates could be shared.
The good news is that the Diocese Safeguarding Team is rolling out a programme of in-person induction meetings for new and existing PSOs starting at the end of February, as well as improvements to safeguarding resources on the diocese’s website. “Information sharing is vital,” says Lisa Anderson. “One positive thing to come out of the Makin revelations is that it has woken parishes up to ask if they are doing things properly in their parish to keep people safe, and if they don’t know, to ask us for support.”
“At the end of the day,” says Carl, “the role of safeguarding is to mitigate against the risk of harm to people, and to protect the most vulnerable in our parishes. We’re working towards a more regular pattern of PSO training throughout the diocese so we can properly equip people to carry out their roles confidently and proficiently. After an introductory training recently, a PSO came up to me and said, having learned what the responsibilities are, “I don’t think I can do this.” We are here to reassure PSOs by equipping them to handle these responsibilities and to create a safeguarding community and ethos where ideas and best practice can be shared and concerns raised and addressed.”
Parish Safeguarding Officer Induction Module training
Thursday, 27th February, 9.30 am - 1 pm
Tuesday, 20th May, 9.30 am - 1 pm
Wednesday, 11th June, 9.30 am - 1 pm
Ludlow Mascall Centre
Parish Safeguarding Officer Induction workshops will introduce people to the PSO role, making sure that they have all the tools required to carry out the job confidently. The focus of the session is to equip participants with an understanding of the role of the Parish Safeguarding Officer and an introduction into key working practices and relationships. The session is intended primarily for those who are new to the PSO role but is also available for any who wish to refresh regardless of how long you have been in the role. It is helpful for PSOs to have completed or be up-to-date with their Basic, Foundation and Leadership safeguarding learning pathways before attending this induction session, but if not, it should be done soon afterwards. The first dates are at Ludlow, and we will add further dates for Hereford and Church Stretton in the coming weeks. Please email Rachel Arnold-Kent at the diocese office if you are interested in booking your place as spaces are limited to 15 per date.
NOTE: We include below some resources for finding support if you or anyone you are in contact with are affected by this article and want to talk to someone in our Safeguarding Team or independently.
Our diocese website safeguarding pages are a good starting point and include contact information for reporting concerns or abuse, support for victims and survivors, and links to local safeguarding organisations.
Nationally you can call the Safe Spaces helpline on 0300 303 1056 or visit safespacesenglandandwales.org.uk or email the National Safeguarding Team. There are also other support services available.
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