Safeguarding Training

Training must be completed by:

• All Church Officers (including PCC members), staff in church bodies, and bellringers
• Anyone going on to complete any other safeguarding learning pathway.

You can find the Instructions on how to complete Basic Awareness in this simple guide.

Once you have completed the material, you have the option of printing a certificate and you will receive a notification at your email address that the course material has been completed.

Safeguarding Foundation training takes approximately two hours to complete and is required for anyone with safeguarding responsibilities or who has contact with children and/or vulnerable adults.  This includes:

• Anyone holding the bishop’s licence, commission, authorisation, or permission (including clergy, PtO, Readers, LLMs).
• Anyone (volunteers and employees) in a role which involves work with children, young people, or vulnerable adults, including Tower Captains and ringing teachers
• Churchwardens.
• Pre-ordination or licence students, prior to the Stage 1 Panel.
• Vergers.
• PCC Members / Lay Chapter Members / DBF Trustees.
• Members of the Diocesan Safeguarding Advisory Panel.

Instructions on how to complete Foundation training online can be found in this easy read guide.

Please contact the safeguarding team if you wish to discuss face-to-face training. 

This is designed for those who lead in shaping the culture of the Church body concerned. 

This must be completed by:

• All Clergy holding the Bishop’s licence, commission, authorisation, or permission, including Honorary/Assistant Bishops and Chaplains.
• All Readers and Hereford Local Ministers 
• Tower captains at prominent towers (including Cathedrals, towers with frequent visitors or people learning)
• Parish/benefice Safeguarding Officers 

Leadership Training Dates

2026 availability below.

Please contact the safeguarding team to book a training session.

Retired Clergy with PTO are offered face-to-face training at venues across our Diocese. As with Leadership, all PTOs must complete the Foundation levels before completing the PTO Pathway. PTOs will receive a separate email invitation to book one of the following dates:

Please contact the safeguarding team to book a training session.

There are tasks for participants to undertake prior to the training sessions. Feedback has highlighted that the preparation tasks enabled them to consider safeguarding at a deeper level.

• Leadership Workbook
• PTO Pathway workbook

Raising Awareness of Domestic Abuse (RAoDA) training can be completed online via the Church of England training portal, instructions can be found here. 

This course will help you to develop a greater understanding of what domestic abuse is, who it affects, and its impact on individuals, children, the wider family, and the community. How does this relate to Christian faith and Church communities? By the end of the course, you will have an increased awareness of the needs of domestic abuse survivors in order to support them effectively, while at the same time understanding the boundaries and limitations of your own role. This course is recommended for everyone and is a requirement for the following groups:

• Anyone holding the bishop’s licence, commission, authorisation, or permission (including clergy, PTO, Readers, LLMs) or serving as an officer of the bishop
• Anyone (volunteers and employees) working with children, young people, or vulnerable adults, including Bishop's Visitors and Pastoral Visitors
• Safeguarding Officers / Safeguarding Leads, including Designated Safeguarding Person in a Religious Community
• Pre-ordination or licence students, prior to BAP or selection Panel

Please refer to the Pathway for more information on the course aims and outcomes. You will need to log in to your Church of England Safeguarding Training Portal account to access the learning.

Group training session dates will be published on this page at present no sessions are scheduled.

Please contact the safeguarding team to book a training session.

The revised Safer Recruitment and People management code of Practice is now available to view Safer Recruitment and People Management Code of Practice | The Church of England

You can complete training via The Safeguarding Training Portal, however we do recommend that you book a face-to-face session as it provides opportunity to ask questions and discuss the guidance in a group setting.  In person dates are below, more will be added in the coming months.

Safer Recruitment training is a requirement for the following groups:

• Recruiting managers and anyone involved in the recruitment of Church Officers (employees, elected members, and volunteers).
• Those with responsibility for administering DBS.
• Safeguarding Officers in all Church bodies, including Designated Safeguarding Person in a Religious Community.
• Ordinands during IME 1.

Please contact the safeguarding team to book a training session.

We have arranged dates for the delivery of the PSO Induction module to introduce people to the PSO role and ensure they have all the tools required to carry out the job confidently. It is helpful to have completed the Basic, Foundation, and Leadership safeguarding learning pathways before attending this induction session; if not, it should be completed soon afterwards. The focus of the session is to equip participants with an understanding of the role of the Parish Safeguarding Officer and an introduction to key working practices and relationships.

The session is intended primarily for those new to the PSO role, but is also available to anyone who wishes to refresh, regardless of how long they have been in the role.  We also welcome members of clergy to participate. 

Please contact the safeguarding team to book a training session.