Audit of Safeguarding Arrangements in the Catholic Church in Ireland

Health Service Executive
October 11, 2012

http://www.hse.ie/eng/services/Publications/services/Children/Church%20Audit%20Report%20Vol%201%20Dioceses%20July%202012.pdf

The sexual abuse of a child by a trusted adult is a traumatic event for the child and can have catastrophic effects on the life experiences and life chances of the child as he or she progresses into adulthood. This is now widely understood and accepted.

What is less clearly understood is the impact that the disclosure of abuse has on the organisation to which the adult belongs. In many cases there is shock and disbelief; an unwillingness to accept the facts, leading in turn to inertia of action and subsequent mismanagement of the situation. It was concerns in relation to possible mismanagement of disclosures of abuse that led to the Government asking the Health Service Executive to conduct an audit of the arrangements for safeguarding children in the Catholic Church in Ireland. The Audit process has been protracted and a number of obstacles, which are detailed within this report, had to be overcome a comprehensive report on the overall state of safeguarding children within theChurch Dioceses could be produced.

The delay has not been without its benefits in that in making assessment of the safeguarding arrangements we can now the Standards and Guidance Document for the Catholic Church in Ireland issued by the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in February 2009. This document is now the first and key point of reference for all those with responsibility for implementing the Church’s safeguarding policy and procedures. The document enables everyone in the Church to reach a uniform standard of best practice in safeguarding.

In this report, the achievement of each diocese in the application of the standards up to November 2011 is analysed as is the information on allegations and information about accused priests as supplied by dioceses in response to audit questionnaires. It is clear that dioceses are at different stages of development but are progressing positively. The analysis of the position in each diocese will facilitate the further development that is needed to achieve the goal that is set out in the Safeguarding document issued by the National Board. It is to this area of activity that any available resources should be targeted.