CONCORD (NH)
Portsmouth Herald
By Beverley Wang
Associated Press
CONCORD - New Hampshire’s Roman Catholic Diocese must step up training and screening of church employees and volunteers who work with children and keep better track of people, according to an independent audit released Thursday.
The diocese does not have a standard for ensuring everyone working in a parish camp, school or church has completed a criminal background check and child-abuse prevention training. It also doesn’t regularly check whether a staffer is a registered sex offender. There’s also no consistent method for keeping accurate personnel records, auditors concluded.
"The diocese’s inability to ensure that all personnel are adequately and timely screened could afford potential perpetrators access to minors," said the report by KPMG International, an audit, tax and advisory firm.