Both the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) and the Church of England’s Second Past Cases Review (PCR2) report uncovered hundreds of cases of church-based abuse.
Behind each case is a victim and survivor of abuse who has bravely come forward to share their experience of betrayal, abuse of trust, and suffering. Their lives have been devastated and pierced with inexcusable pain. We need to lean in, listen, and learn.
Of course, abuse isn’t unique to any one denomination, organisation or worldview. Perpetrators of abuse have been found across a range of institutions of all faiths and none. Anyone who wants to paint religion as the problem need only look at cases in the police, social care, health, and education sectors to see that abuse is not confined to one single church denomination or group.
It’s fair to acknowledge that examples of good safeguarding practice have been found during both IICSA’s investigations and the PCR2 report. The PCR2 report did note improvement over the last 18 months in the quality and management of investigations. None of this minimises the pain of those who have experienced abuse from clergy or church workers, nor should it allow the church to become complacent in making places of worship safer for everyone, especially vulnerable people. As the Bishop of Lichfield said to BBC News: ‘We need to be constantly vigilant.’ This should come as no surprise to Christians who believe in sin and the brokenness of humanity.
Senior leaders in the Church of England have taken the findings of PCR2 as a reminder of this brokenness, expressing ‘profound shame’ and publicly apologising for institutional safeguarding failings. Following the report’s publication, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York issued a joint statement saying: ‘We sincerely apologise for our failures and want to reach out to those who are still suffering from the pain and misery they endured.’
The new national Past Cases Review of all 42 dioceses came about following criticism of the previous review, published in 2010, which was criticised for lacking survivor engagement. Independent reviewers found 383 cases nationally relating to abuse in PRC2. The independent reviewers found that of the 383 new cases 168 related to children, 149 to vulnerable adults, with 27 recorded as both and 39 with no recorded data.
Inadequate record keeping was found to pose a potential risk to survivors as well as inconsistent responses. Another key finding of the review was a ‘culture of deference’ in senior leadership.
The review led to 26 national recommendations, including the establishment of a victims’ charter to enable children to be ‘truly “heard” when they are expressing distress or communicating that something is wrong’. The Church of England’s National Safeguarding Steering Group have accepted the report and committed to implementing the recommendations.
With the report published and recommendations made, and IICSA having drawn to a close, the church’s safeguarding journey will continue. While the Christian community in the UK has made significant strides in safeguarding awareness and good practice compared to many groups and settings within other faiths, IICSA reports revealed substantial failings in how organisations and institutions have protected vulnerable people.
Uncovering the truth means being prepared to lean into hard conversations. It’s messy, uncomfortable, and it means being willing to accept where we’ve gone wrong, what we can learn and how we can do better. It means looking into dark places. Yet this is where churches and other institutions can step up and speak out for justice.
Of all institutions, the church is called to be a beacon, a light in that darkness. God’s special concern for vulnerable people is all over the Bible. Inquiries and review processes are an opportunity to renew and deepen safeguarding commitment by ensuring that the lessons of the past are fully learned. We’ll do well to listen, learn and embed change, taking ownership and responsibility for failings; otherwise we do an injustice to those who have suffered abuse.
Apologies and learning lessons are important steps in responding to abuse, but too often that is where the conversation stops. After taking responsibility and learning lessons, we must make active, tangible, timely steps towards change so that words match actions. That might be committing to more regular safeguarding audits, or asking open questions about culture with the leadership team and with church members – ‘Do we care more about our reputation than how well we protect vulnerable people?’ ‘Is our record keeping and response up to standard? How do we measure that?’ Church, let’s lead the way.
Emma Lawson is the Communications Manager for the independent Christian safeguarding charity thirtyone:eight www.thirtyoneeight.org
