Over 150 Parish Safeguarding Officers and church leaders came together at Christ Church Cathedral to mark Safeguarding Sunday in the diocese with a special day of reflection and renewed commitment to caring for the most vulnerable in our churches.
The afternoon comprised two workshops, before the four bishops led a service to thank all present for the hard work that goes in to making our churches safe.
The Oxford Survivor Group
The first workshop focused on trauma-informed responses to survivors of abuse, run by the Oxford Survivor Group, who work with the safeguarding team and diocesan safeguarding panel to enable the development of survivor support, care and engagement within the diocese.
Three members of the group shared their stories, alongside a poignant film that showed a series of quotes from survivors on their personal definitions of trauma.
The workshop posed the question:
“How do we adopt a trauma responsive approach?”
There was also an opportunity to write a commitment to add to the tree of truth. The tree is a feature of events run by the organisation Survivors’ Voices.
'Don't be too British!'
A second workshop looked at managing the risk of those who have sexually offended. Kerensa Butcher, who has a long history of working with Thames Valley Police, called on the group to not be afraid of uncomfortable conversations when managing the risk of people who have sexually offended.
“We can be terribly British about this and not like having difficult conversations."
Kerensa was joined by members of the diocesan safeguarding team, Charlotte Wilmshurst, Area Safeguarding Officer for Berkshire, and Erica Hegg, who covers Dorchester, who talked about managing and mitigating risk in a church setting, before encouraging small groups to work through some case studies.
The workshop concluded with a reminder to lean on the diocesan team for support - as Archdeacon Jonathan Chaffey said; "You aren't on your own". The diocesan safeguarding team, led by Louise Whitehead, comprises four area safeguarding advisors, a training officer, a DBS specialist and administrative support. The team draw on their experience from previous careers in both policing and social care to support parishes by providing safeguarding training, safeguarding advice and leading on safeguarding case management. They also work alongside and support our clergy and PSOs to help ensure we have positive safeguarding cultures within our churches.
"Just as you did it to one of the least..."
After the workshops, Christ Church Cathedral hosted a service of lament and thanksgiving for Safeguarding Sunday. The service reflected on Christ's words that:
"Just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me."
Bishop Mary presided the service, which was an opportunity to reflect and repent, to recall the importance of safeguarding at the heart of all we do, and to give thanks for the work of Parish Safeguarding Officers as they lead our communities in this important way.
The Oxford Survivor Group offered a profoundly moving contribution to the service, speaking with honesty and courage about their lived experiences. Their words brought a depth and seriousness to the gathering that all present will remember as they go back out into their day-to-day commitment to care. One member read a powerful poem on lament and hope, and the need for courage in the face of the challenges ahead:
“There is a place where lament and hope and courage meet. It is a holy meeting. Are you there, in this holy meeting too?”
Bishop Steven's sermon started with a solemn thank you to PSOs, church leaders, the diocesan safeguarding team, and especially the Oxford Survivor Group for being here, for their weighty contribution to the day's workshops, and for their "challenging words, which will be long remembered," earlier in the service.
Bishop Dave led the intercessions, praying for each of the Survivor Group and giving thanks for all who use their voices in support of others.
The service ended with a commissioning of Parish Safeguarding Officers, to warm applause. Bishop Gavin, diocesan lead bishop for safeguarding, invited all PSOs to stand and re-affirm their calling to the work of 'caring for the most vulnerable in our churches and communities' and to speak 'boldly in the service of truth'.
As the afternoon drew to a close with refreshments, people left with a renewed and shared commitment to this vital, often difficult work, knowing that we continue it together and with the support of the diocesan safeguarding team.
Louise Whitehead on safeguarding and the Christian life
On Safeuarding Sunday Louise speaks about how safeguarding isn't an add on to Christian life, it is the Christian life. It is compassion turned to action.
So it's good to have a bit of time today to talk to you about safeguarding. And when we think about safeguarding, a lot of the time we think about children. But today, I want us to think about how we safeguard adults in our community, in our church. And I'm not just talking about people who have additional needs. I'm talking about people you may be sitting next to today. And I think we are pretty good in this church in how we safeguard.
But it is Safeguarding Sunday. And I don't want us to be complacent about safeguarding. So I'm going to talk for about five minutes and I'm going to give you five things to take away about safeguarding. So first of all, harm can and it does happen in our community. Yeah, we are a lovely market town in the Cotswolds, but harm still happens.
Now what kind of harm are we talking about? We have a number of older people who come to church. Let's think about what kind of harm they could experience. And I mention older people because with age there can be vulnerability. And we need to safeguard people when power intersects, when it meets vulnerability. It's when a powerful person takes advantage of someone's vulnerable state.
Now someone may be experiencing financial abuse. Maybe their daughter is taking money from them. Someone may have to ask their husband to leave their house. Someone may be lonely and desperate for connection, and their neighbour takes advantage of this and exploits them. I've seen all of these situations in my job in the diocese, and they all demonstrate how power takes advantage of vulnerability. Okay, so secondly, let's think about what we can do. What does good safeguarding look like in our community?
So I think it begins with awareness. We need to be attentive to signs that something may not be right. Maybe it's changes in mood, unexplained injuries, sudden financial difficulties. or withdrawal from church life. So not every concern will turn out to be a safeguarding issue. But noticing is the first act of protection. and it also involves speaking up. If something worries you, even if it's small and you're not sure, it's always better to raise it than to stay silent.
Churches really need to be places where people feel free to express their concerns and where we take those concerns seriously. And it's not about an accusation, that's not what sharing concerns are about. It's about care. Now, the third point about good safeguarding is about boundaries. Clear boundaries protect everyone. We've just discussed as a PCC what good pastoral care looks like. Where people giving pastoral care are safely recruited, they handle information carefully, and they make sure no one's placed at risk.
Now, I quite often hear, this is all too much. and it's a waste of time. But boundaries do not put limitations on our ministry. They're actually structures that make ministry trustworthy. And in fact, church settings like ours can create particular vulnerabilities. People come to church seeking comfort. They're quite often seeking healing or they're seeking meaning, particularly after bereavement or life changes. This trust they put in church is really quite sacred and we really cannot misuse it or take it for granted. So ensuring our pastoral visits and our prayer ministry are conducted safely and respectfully protects those receiving care and those giving it.
Now, the fourth point is about culture. Of course, policies matter and training matters. But the most powerful safeguard is a community shaped by kindness, care and accountability. When we cultivate a culture where people feel valued, they feel included, they feel listened to, we actually reduce vulnerability. And finally, safeguarding is about hope. Sometimes it can feel heavy, can feel filled with risk assessments, difficult conversations, and really quite painful stories. But fundamentally, it's a ministry of hope. It says everyone deserves to be safe. In the gospel, Jesus continually reaches out to those who are pushed to the margins, those who are fragile, those others overlook. His example shows us safeguarding is not an add-on to the Christian life. It is the Christian life. Its compassion turned into action.
So as a church, let's make safeguarding a shared responsibility. It's not just for the PCC or Fergus or me. Let's be people who pay attention. Let's be people who speak up. Let's be a church where there are boundaries in place. And let's be people who care for one another. So we ensure our church is a place where everyone can belong safely and with dignity.