Actions by the End of March

Foreward

As this is the first time I have written to all the Safeguarding Representatives in the Diocese I would first of all liketo thank you all for the welcome you have given to me. I have managed to get around to all the Deaneries now and have met with a large number of reps. It has been really useful to hear how things are in terms of safeguarding in your parishes and to listen to the issues you are concerned about. Thank you for your useful suggestions made as to how we can support you in promoting the culture of safeguarding in the Diocese. I will be taking those suggestions forward to the Safeguarding Commission meeting in March and will let you know how we get on.

One of the ways in which we can very easily make progress in promoting a safeguarding culture is in agreeing a few common approaches which will be put into place in every parish in the Diocese. I hope you will agree that none of these actions will take up much of your time but they will ensure a commonality of approach in every parish.

Actions by the end of March

• Please can you download theposter (A)and the Safeguarding Policy Statement (B) advertising yourself as Parish Rep and myself as Safeguarding Coordinator and make sure they are clearly displayed on a noticeboard in your church. Please can you check that your own contact details are correct and that you remove any that are out of date. If you need paper copies then please contact Jane.

• I have attached a safeguarding notice (C) with the newsletter. Please could you display this notice in any toilets in and around the church and parish centre. The reason I have included this is that in my experience, people in need of help or guidance are often upset, and do not necessarily look for information on a noticeboard in full view of everyone else. Toilet cubicles are often a place they may go

to and realise that there is help and support out there for them.

• I think it is very important that the parishioners of the diocese know about the commitment of the Church to safeguarding and also that they are aware of who to make contact with if they need help. I have attached a safeguarding bulletin (D)which I would like to you ask tobe placed in your parish newsletter as soon as possible, for one week in the first instance, and then we will ask again later in the year so that it becomes a regular item.

• Please could you request that your name is always on the parish newsletter as a matter of course. I know that in some parishes this is the case already.

The DBS Process

In many meetings you have shared your questions and issues relating to the DBS process which you all work so hard to deliver effectively. There are a few things we need to address to ensure that we keep delivery of DBS to a high standard.

• Jane will shortly be sending out parish lists for you to check. You will need to ask those whose DBS requires renewal as to whether they are signed up to the update service. We will include a column for you to record this. Also, if anybody has left appointment or deceased please would you highlight their name. Please return your list with any amendments to Jane so that she can update our records. This will really help us to keep on top of the administration which runs alongside the process.

• I need to remind everyone that before any DBS check is made, an application form for the role is filled in and references are requested. Only after that has been done should a check be applied for. The application forms and references need to be securely stored in the parish office and should be retained for 10 years after the individual has left their volunteering role. If you have not been doing this part of the process then don’t worry about what has happened up to now. We have to ‘draw a line’ under that and make sure that we are following the entire process from now on.

• When I visited CSAS to be trained in administering DBS, I was told that in this diocese everyone applying for a role has been categorised as ‘Church Ministry 1’ meaning that they are checked at an enhanced level and on the barred list for children and adults. We should not be checking at this level unless the role requires it specifically. We must identify the volunteer role in the appropriate category. There is a table summarising all the roles which is available on the CSAS website, a copy of which we have attached for you to see (E). I will go through this when we next meet, but in the meantime do not hesitate to get in touch if you need some help or clarification.

• There have been some questions raised as to whether Eucharistic Ministers need to be DBS checked. The Diocese has taken the view that ALL Eucharistic Ministers must have an up to date DBS certificate. This direction has been sent to your Parish Priest so they should be aware of the requirement to do the checks.

• I have done some research on the requirement to check young people aged 16-18 years. The current guidance is that if they are engaged in regulated activity (as for an adult), and those they are supervising in the activity are 16 years or younger, then they should have a DBS certificate.

Training and Reps Meetings

I am sorry that many of you had to come out in freezing weather to attend meetings over the last 3 months. I am hoping to avoid the need for meetings at such an inconvenient time in the future. This year I would like to focus our meetings specifically on training and so have decided that for this year at least, I intend to hold one meeting of two hours for each group of reps rather than two per year. This will allow us to spend meaningful time on training,whilst also leaving some time for discussion of issues. I realise that this changes the pattern you have been used to, but would like to give it a try, and I hope as well that this means you will only have to make one journey rather than two. It remains the case that if you want any advice or need to refer a safeguarding concern to me then I am available at all times by phone or by email. If you cannot attend the meeting in your area then you are always welcome to attend another reps meeting in the diocese. Please would you contact Jane to let her know which meeting/training you will be attending so that we can book a place for you on the date which best suits you.

The dates for meeting/training this year are;

(all 7.00pm – 9.00pm)

Wednesday 25th April (Our Lady of Lincoln)

Tuesday 8th May (St Gilbert’s, Bourne)

Tuesday 15th May (St Mary’s, Loughborough)

Wednesday 6th June (Mackworth Diocesan Centre, Derby)

Thursday 14th June(St Mary’s, Brigg)

Tuesday 19th June (St Barnabas, Nottingham)

Thursday 27th September (All Saints, Glossop)

Tuesday 2nd October(St Patrick’s, Leicester)

Tuesday 9th October(St Philip Neri, Mansfield)

Coming Soon ……………

We are in the process of including all the upto date documents and paperwork that a rep will need to carry out their role on the Family Care website. I will let you know when this is up and running.

Contact Details

Clare McKenzie

Family Care

28 Magdala Road

Nottingham NG3 5DF

Tel: 0115 9603010