National Church Institutions Safeguarding 2025-05-22
2025-05-22
Response quality
Questions & Answers
Q1
Partial Answer
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Context
The General Synod voted in February to adopt a partially independent safeguarding model that includes an external scrutiny body, but work remains on moving towards full independence.
Next month I will meet the Safeguarding Minister alongside my constituent and a group of survivors of abuse and safeguarding failure within the Church. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Battersea (Marsha De Cordova) for the work she has been doing to push the case for fully independent safeguarding processes. Will she continue to impress upon colleagues the need for full independence in terms of operations and oversight within the Church?
I reiterate that it is really important that Members, including my hon. Friend, continue to raise this issue and hold the Church to account. The Church is undertaking detailed work to look towards seeking to go with a fully independent model. In the meantime, the Church is getting on with setting up the external scrutiny body, which is likely to be on a statutory basis, in order to give it depth and may require legislation.
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