The Diocese of Liverpool has published a summary of the independent report into past safeguarding cases. The review, known as the Past Cases Review 2, was one entered into by all dioceses of the Church of England as a response to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.
Our report is published at the same time as the National Safeguarding Team publishes its report into cases from all 42 dioceses that make up the Church of England.
You can find their report on their website.
The purpose of PCR2 was to identify both good practice and institutional failings in relation to how allegations of abuse have been handled, assess any identified risks and respond to these where appropriate, and to provide recommendations to the Church that will lead to improvements in its safeguarding work. We will be studying it in detail to learn from this, which is the experience of all dioceses in the Church of England. The national church has made 26 recommendations and we will implement any that are relevant and will benefit good practice in our diocese.
As part of the process, every diocese appointed Independent Reviewers to examine our files and systems and to present a thorough report.
You can read our report online here
Our Independent Reviewers identified 20 recommendations in their report to us. We accepted them all and our Diocesan Safeguarding Team has been working to implement them. We believe all will be completed by January 2023.
The Rt Revd Bev Mason, Acting Bishop of Liverpool and Bishop of Warrington said “Safeguarding is critically important for every organisation and the church is no exception. We need everybody in every church, school, chaplaincy, and worshipping community to recognise this and take appropriate action
“The report shows that we have not always got it right. For that and for every person who has suffered abuse in our diocese I am so sorry. I am deeply sorry for all those who feel that they have been let down by our systems and procedures, for those who felt they could not report the abuse they have suffered or those who feel let down or unheard by the church.
“We have strengthened our approach to safeguarding practice and work hard on improving the culture across the worshipping communities in our diocese so that in all places and among all individuals safeguarding is given the utmost priority. We remain determined to improve. As a diocese, we pledge our ongoing commitment to making our church a safe place for all. The actions in this report will continue to help us achieve that goal.”
Finding support
If you or anyone you are in contact with are affected by the publication of this report and want to talk to someone independently please call the Safe Spaces helpline on 0300 303 1056 or visit www.safespacesenglandandwales.org.uk