Scotland's Catholic Bishops Announce Range of Safeguarding Initiatives

The Scottish Catholic Media Office
November 25, 2013

http://www.scmo.org/articles/scotland%E2%80%99s-catholic-bishops-announce-range-of-safeguarding-initiatives.html



Embargo 11.00





The Bishops’ Conference of Scotland has today announced details of three safeguarding initiatives, which will be launched over the next 12 months. In a letter read out at all of Scotland’s 500 Catholic parishes yesterday (24 November, the Feast of Christ the King) the President of the Bishops’ Conference, Archbishop Philip Tartaglia said:





“We recognise the trauma and pain that survivors of abuse have suffered and we are committed to providing for them both justice and healing.” The Archbishop added that 2013 had been “a test of faith” for Catholics, but the Church was committed to “consolidation of our safeguarding practices, the renewal of trust in our unshakeable commitment to atoning for abuse in the past, guarding against abuse in the present and eliminating abuse in the future, and supporting those who have been harmed.”


Archbishop Tartaglia also promised that all the initiatives were being “launched in a spirit of openness and transparency” and in recognition of the fact that “safeguarding is a priority within the Church, and all who work in the Church must realise this.”


The initiatives concerned are:





1.    Immediate publication of all Diocesan Safeguarding Audits from 2006-2012, giving a statistical breakdown of reported safeguarding incidents during those years. 





2.    An external “Review of Safeguarding Protocols and Procedures” which will review the suitability and robustness of safeguarding procedures and the quality and rigour of their implementation nationally. The Very Rev Dr Andrew McLellan, CBE, former Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and former Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons will direct this.





3.    A Statistical Review of all Historic Cases of Abuse from 1947-2005





A full description of each of these processes is given below.





Commenting on his participation in the review process, Dr McLellan said:


“I have agreed to chair the review panel which will instigate and complete a review of ‘Awareness and Safety’ in the Catholic Church in Scotland. My appointment is a generous sign of respect not simply for me but for the Church of Scotland; and I am pleased to be able to help the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland in what has been for them a difficult year. But my first concern is not to support the Catholic church: rather it is to seek the best protection of many vulnerable children and adults. In pursuing that aim I will be determined to discover the truth and to make clear recommendations. I am very much encouraged by the independence I will have in selecting the membership of the panel, detailing its remit and deciding on its timescale; and by the assurance I have been given that the Catholic Bishops will accept our recommendations." 


Dr McLellan added: “Over the remaining weeks of 2013, I hope to turn my attention to these matters so that I can announce the particulars of the review process and structure early in 2014.”





Mgr. Hugh Bradley, General Secretary of the Bishops’ Conference said:


“The Bishops are delighted that Dr Andrew McLellan has agreed to chair a review of Safeguarding procedures and practice. Dr McLellan is highly respected Church leader, a dedicated public servant and a man of the highest integrity, we look forward to receiving his report and commit ourselves to acting on it."





Responding to the announcement, the Catholic Church’s new National Coordinator for Safeguarding, Tina Campbell said:


"These are incredibly positive and exciting developments, I look forward to working with the Bishops of Scotland, our clergy and the many dedicated people across the country who both implement and support our National Safeguarding policies and procedures in their parish communities. The work of Safeguarding is an important ministry in the Church and it is a privilege to be involved in it."





ENDS





Peter Kearney


Director


Catholic Media Office


5 St. Vincent Place


Glasgow


G1 2DH


0141 221 1168(T)


0141 204 2458(F)


07968 122291(M)


pk@scmo.org


www.scmo.org








Notes to Editors:





1. Diocesan Safeguarding Audits from 2006-2012:


The results of Diocesan Safeguarding Audits from 2006-2012, will give a statistical breakdown of reported safeguarding allegations during those years. From this statistical presentation, it will be possible to see at a glance how many allegations have been reported in each year, the category of the incident, the category of the reported perpetrator and the outcome of the investigation.  These statistics have been compiled by the Safeguarding Offices of each diocese, signed off by each Diocesan Bishop and collated by the Scottish Catholic Safeguarding Service.  The Safeguarding Service will also collate and publish an annual statistical return on behalf of all religious congregations and orders working in Scotland.  


Summary: Between 2006 – 2012


•    Enhanced Disclosure Checks have been carried out on an average of 6,300 clergy and volunteers each year


•    There are currently over 6,000 volunteers trained in Safeguarding


•    There were an average of 6 allegations of abuse made each year (of which 3 were historical – pre 2000)


•    On average 3/4 allegations made each year are against clergy and 2/3 against laity


•    55% of allegations were of a sexual nature, 19% alleged physical abuse, 11% were verbal and 15% were emotional


•    An Appendix to the Report will also contain statistics for autonomous religious orders. Although not under the jurisdiction of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland, these returns have been collated and provided for completeness. 


•    There are 706 Priests in Scotland (2012 census)


The full audits can be downloaded at: http://www.bpsconfscot.com/Portals/0/AUDIT%20REPORTS%202006-2012.pdf





2. Review of safeguarding protocols and procedures


This will comprise a professional, external “Review of safeguarding protocols and procedures”: as detailed in “Awareness and Safety in our Catholic Communities”.  The Very Rev Andrew McLellan, former Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and former Chief Inspector of Prisons, will direct this review.  This review is aimed at assessing the suitability and robustness of safeguarding procedures and the quality and rigour of their implementation nationally.  





3. A Statistical Review of all Historic Cases of Abuse from 1947-2005


A Statistical Review of all Historic Cases of Abuse from 1947-2005.  Each Bishop has agreed that his Diocesan Office and Safeguarding Office will provide for the relevant information to be extracted from files held by each Diocesan Curia. Once the statistics have been compiled they will be subjected to independent statistical analysis.  The results of this analysis will be published in November 2014 as part of that year’s annual statistical return.








4. Biography, Very Rev Dr Andrew McLellan, CBE


Andrew McLellan is the Convener of the World Mission Council of the Church of Scotland. He was HM Chief Inspector of Prisons for Scotland from 2002 until 2009. Before that he was a parish minister in Greenock, Stirling and Edinburgh. He was the convener of the Church and Nation Committee of the Church of Scotland, which dealt with social and political matters on behalf of the church; and the convener of the Parish Development Fund, which supported new forms of mission and service. In 2000 he was Moderator of the General Assembly. He is the author of two books arising out of his experience. He was chairman of the Religious Advisory Committee of the BBC in Scotland and a Director of Scottish Television. In 2009 he was awarded the C.B.E





5.Biography, Tina Campbell MSc, BD(Hons) PGCE, Cert Couns, PGDip Couns, PQCert Systemic Family Therapy, Counselling Sup. Dip Counselling.


Tina is Head of a large Counselling Service within NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde. She has been a qualified Psychotherapist for 17 years. Tina started her counselling career during the course of 18 years spent teaching Religious Studies mostly in independent Catholic boarding Schools. During this time she was also appointed the first female lay chaplain at a Jesuit School.





She   works from a psychodynamic modality, and has pursued further training in Systemic Family Therapy, Narrative Therapy, EMDR and as a couple’s counsellor. 


She is currently Chair of the British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy Healthcare Division and regularly contributes to the Healthcare Journal. Tina also brings a significant number of years working as the  Safeguarding Advisor for the Diocese of Motherwell to her new post.


She officially starts her new post as National Safeguarding Coordinator for the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland on 1st December. However she has already been actively involved in the current developments nationally.


6. “Awareness and Safety in Our Catholic Communities” is the nationally agreed guidance document on Safeguarding in the Catholic Church in Scotland.