The Ozanne Foundation, whose formation was announced last December, held a formal launch event on Monday.
This press release was issued: Ozanne Foundation Unveils Strategy to Combat Prejudice.
At the event, Bishop Paul Bayes, chair of the trustees, delivered this speech.
News reports of the event:
Guardian Rejection by C of E has driven LGBT people to suicide, bishop says
Christian Today Bishop and senior clergyman join calls for Church of England to lose equalities exemptions
Telegraph The Church of England should lose its exemption to discrimination laws, Dean of St Paul’s says
40 CommentsSixty bishops have joined with other faith leaders to condemn the UK government Two-child limit on Universal Credit policy.
This has been very widely reported in the media.
C of E press release Bishops call for rethink on two-child limit
Bishop Paul Butler writes: A blessing not a burden: why every child should be valued equally
End Child Poverty report: Unhappy Birthday! The Two-Child Limit at One Year Old
End Child Poverty press release
The full text of the letter and the list of signatories is copied below the fold.
48 CommentsToday the Church Times has a two page spread of articles following up on the IICSA hearings.
Leader comment: Safeguarding: the next steps
…These pages contain a range of different perspectives on how to tackle sexual abuse; and yet there is a common desire to make safeguarding comprehensive and effective. This sounds like stating the obvious. There is a danger, however, pointed out most clearly by Josephine Anne Stein, that the type of safeguarding being promoted throughout the Church is modelled on a pattern designed to protect institutions from prosecution. A Christian organisation must do better than this…
Martin Warner Safeguarding: what we got wrong, and the steps we are taking to put it right
Linda Woodhead Forget culture. It’s a new theology we need
Anonymous: Sex-offender asks: are only the righteous called to repentance?
Josephine Anne Stein: The safeguarding overhaul that’s needed
…Safeguarding in the Church of England has burgeoned into a procedural, bureaucratic, and bloated industry that does not appear to be effective either in responding to abuse or in preventing further abuse. When checked earlier this year, the C of E’s safeguarding policy posted on the National Safeguarding Team’s website consisted of 364 separate pages…
13 Comments…THERE are alternative approaches to safeguarding within the healthcare sector, grounded in the development of professional ethics, the regular assessment of fitness to practise, and professional discipline.
There are also alternatives to formal safeguarding complaints procedures that combine knowledge and experience from occupational psychology, specialist social work, and restorative justice, much of which is unfamiliar within the Church.
Furthermore, there are inexpensive and empowering ways to improve knowledge and understanding of both the causes of and responses to abuse in different constituencies within the Church — a bottom-up approach in contrast to current centralised, top-down training. If everyone in the Church is responsible for safeguarding, everyone is also responsible for ownership of safeguarding…
The Bishop of Salisbury, Nicholas Holtam, preached at the diocesan Maundy Thursday Chrism Mass.
The press release about this: A Maundy Message in the World’s Eye
The full text of his sermon is available here.
Another quote from the sermon:
…As a parish priest I always used to find that people with the most intractable problems would appear after the Sunday evening service when nowhere was open and there was no-one to whom I could refer them. For bishops the equivalent is receiving a letter late on Friday afternoon from the Archbishops about the Church of England and the Independent Inquiry on Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) which they wanted read out or distributed at the start of Holy Week.
Please will you pray this Holy Week especially for all those involved, and for all affected by safeguarding issues.
Thank you for responding so promptly.
Janet Fife wrote a sharp but insightful Survivor’s reply to the Archbishops which is online.
I thought you might want to know,
she wrote,
how I, as a survivor, feel about your letter. And I know you’ll pay careful attention, because you’ve said you want to listen to survivors.
Since Archbishop Justin has called for an end to clericalism and deference, I’m going to call you Justin and John.
If you’re going to address us all as ‘Sisters and Brothers in Christ’, don’t finish with ‘The Most Revd and Rt Hon’. It’s just not brotherly. It looks like showing off. It certainly doesn’t look like the shame Justin said he felt.
If you want to send out something called a pastoral letter, make it pastoral…What practical steps have you taken to help survivors, for instance?
And so on.
It’s a good letter and a tough one and it’s received quite a lot of comment. She got me thinking about what we would be doing today gathered together and all dressed up at the start of the great three days that lead to Easter through betrayal, denial and the disciples running for it…
At the weekend, the Revd Canon Prof James Woodward, Principal of Sarum College, Salisbury, wrote this article: Salisbury Under Siege – What Does it Mean to be an Easter People?. An excerpt:
19 Comments… In the gospel accounts of the resurrection, there is both fear and joy. Following Jesus is not a protection from the difficulties and challenges that face us in life. Being an Easter people does not mean that any of us will not require handkerchief to mop up our tears. All of us will know deep in our hearts what our lives, our world is like, and how much of a struggle it is. As human beings we have to deal with our fears and the reality of how little control we are able to exercise over circumstances and experiences.
It is into this condition of who we are and where we are that God can touch us with Easter life and hope. Easter peace is not the obliteration of our past or present, but the re-drawing of our lives into a new way of seeing. Faith can give us the opportunity for direction, redirection, meaning and depth.
As we live with complexity and uncertainty in Salisbury we have an opportunity to take this opportunity to work together in live for what is good. However partial limited our faith may be that always lies the possibility of transformation. We can be confident but we must safeguard against a triumphalism which does not listen carefully to human experience and its sensitivities. We can nurture faith that embraces doubt and in doing so can grows through openness and honesty.
Remember Salisbury in your prayers. Consider the longer view, the enduring truth that goodness is always stronger than evil. Love will conquer. Justice will prevail.
That will mean a change for us. It will also require a much stronger sense of the relational and our readiness to move on and beyond our internal dialogues and contestations to listen more carefully to human experience. We need space and time to share our story…
Since the hearings concluded last week, there have been several further reports in addition to the letter from the archbishops and the response from Janet Fife.
The Church Times reported on both of those here: Sorry not enough, Archbishops’ letter says after IICSA, and a survivor agrees.
The BBC radio programme Sunday carried a lengthy report available to listen to here (starts at 28 minutes).
The Independent inquiry into child sexual abuse in the Anglican Church concluded three weeks of hearing this week. Phil Johnson, abuse survivor, talks to Emily Buchanan about what the hearings have meant to him. Bishop Alan Wilson, long term critic of the Church on its handling of clerical sex abuse cases, discusses the positives and negatives to have emerged. And Bishop Mark Sowerby, the deputy lead bishop for Safeguarding responds. Martin Bashir BBC Religion Correspondent provides analysis.
Martin Sewell has written at Archbishop Cranmer In Holy Week we should hold our Archbishops’ feet to the fire.
And Martyn Percy has written for Modern Church Church of England ‘no longer competent’ to manage safeguarding, says senior cleric.
The full article is available here.
14 CommentsSurviving Church has published this: Survivor’s Reply to Archbishops’ pastoral letter.
The author is Janet Fife.
Please read the whole letter.
18 CommentsFrom the York diocesan website: Independent Inquiry on Child Sexual Abuse: Archbishops’ Joint Pastoral Letter
12 CommentsThe Archbishops of York and Canterbury have written a joint Pastoral Letter for wide circulation following the end of the hearing which took place over the last three weeks as part of the Independent Inquiry on Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA).
“We are writing to you to ask for your prayers as Holy Week begins and as the Independent Inquiry on Child Sexual Abuse has finished its hearing into matters in the Diocese of Chichester. Please will you pray this Holy Week especially for all those involved, and for all affected by safeguarding issues.”
Archbishops Sentamu and Justin hope that their letter can either be read out or distributed this weekend and at the start of Holy Week.
“We take very seriously all that has been heard by the Inquiry. Archbishop Justin said when he gave evidence last week that he had learned again through listening and reading the evidence given to the Inquiry, that we must not simply say sorry, but that we must also take action that demonstrates clearly that we have learnt the lessons. It is a fact that Bishops and Archbishops are now rightly required to listen, learn and act in accordance with safeguarding legislation and good practice.”
Please download the Archbishops’ letter below:
The final day in this three week period of hearings has concluded and the transcript is available here.
Many documents have at last been uploaded to the IICSA website, and I will publish links to some of the more important ones in a separate article soon.
Before today’s hearing there were some comments about the hearings made yesterday, including these:
Guardian editorial: The Guardian view of abuse in the church: a truly dreadful story
Michael Sadgrove Child Sexual Abuse – what does the church do about shame?
Archbishop Cranmer Welby condemns the church’s deferential culture of clericalism and tribalism
Law & Religion UK IICSA: Archbishop Welby’s evidence session
And earlier, another article which I failed to link to previously: IICSA: Some legal views
Reports on today’s session:
Church Times Church of England would be shut down if it were a school, survivors’ lawyer tells final IICSA hearing
Christian Today Church of England made ‘conscious effort to treat survivors badly’, inquiry hears
Guardian Child abuse inquiry: ‘collusion and cover-up’ rife among C of E clergy
The Tablet Church of England ‘inappropriate’ organisation to have charge of children, inquiry hears
6 CommentsUpdated Thursday evening
The Court of Appeal has today dismissed the appeal by Jeremy Pemberton against the earlier judgement of the Employment Appeal Tribunal.
The judgement is now available online: Pemberton v Inwood [2018] EWCA Civ 564, with a printable version here.
There are numerous media reports:
Anglican Communion News Service Priest in same-sex marriage loses legal challenge to bishop’s “discriminatory” response
Guardian Gay hospital chaplain loses discrimination appeal against C of E
Christian Today Gay clergyman Jeremy Pemberton loses discrimination appeal against Church of England
Press Association via Premier Gay priest denied job after marrying partner loses discrimination appeal
BBC Gay priest Jeremy Pemberton’s discrimination appeal dismissed
Huffington Post Gay Priest Jeremy Pemberton Loses Discrimination Appeal Against The Church Of England
Newark Advertiser Jeremy Pemberton loses discrimination appeal
Nottingham Post Gay priest ‘naturally disappointed’ after his appeal over discrimination claim is dismissed
Church Times Bishop was in his rights to refuse Pemberton a licence, tribunal rules
Jeremy Pemberton has issued a press release, which is copied below the fold.
ACNS reports:
Commenting on today’s judgment, a Southwell and Nottingham diocesan spokesperson said: “We are pleased that the court has upheld the decision made with regards to the employment tribunal. We recognise that this has been a long and difficult process for many of those concerned, and we hold them in our thoughts and prayers.”
OneBodyOneFaith has issued a statement: Disappointment and gratitude as Pemberton case concludes
39 Comments“…The question now is less whether the bishop acted legally – that seems beyond doubt – but whether people want to continue to support this kind of discrimination against committed, loving couples as they seek to follow Christ. There is a real sense of the need for change, the will for change and the time for change.“
Updated Thursday morning
The transcript of the final day of taking evidence from live witnesses can be found here.
There will be no hearing tomorrow, Thursday. On Friday the final portions of some written statements will be read into the record, and that will be followed by statements from the lawyers representing various “core participants”.
Media reports:
Church Times
‘I am ashamed of the Church’, Archbishop Welby admits to IICSA
Christian Today
Archbishop of Canterbury goes before child sex abuse hearings
Justin Welby: Child sex abuse by priests will ‘destroy the Church’ if it continues
The Tablet
Archbishop Welby to give evidence at national inquiry into child sexual abuse
Archbishop Welby ‘appalled and ashamed’ of Church of England
Press Association via Daily Mail Abusers may be forgiven but can never be trusted again, Archbishop tells inquiry
The Times Abuse makes me ashamed of church, says Welby (£)
Guardian Justin Welby: sexual abusers can never be trusted again
Belfast Telegraph Archbishop tells child abuse inquiry he is ‘ashamed’ of Church
Abusers may be forgiven but can never be trusted again, Archbishop tells inquiry
Anglican Communion News Service
Archbishop of Canterbury gives evidence to Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse
Telegraph Justin Welby: I have learned to be ashamed of the Church of England
Religion News Service via Colorado Springs Gazette Archbishop of Canterbury: Church has failed to protect children from abuse
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church IICSA -reflections on Welby’s conclusions
6 CommentsUpdated again Wednesday afternoon
The transcript of the Anglican hearings for Monday 19 March is available here.
Witnesses heard were: two survivors, the Bishop of Manchester (concerning religious coummunities) and Graham Tilby (head of the National Safeguarding Team).
Media reports:
Church Times
Church must create ‘culture of challenge’ Peter Ball survivor tells IICSA
Abuse allegations must be reported, Church of England safeguarding adviser tells IICSA
Christian Today
Abuse inquiry reveals Church’s ‘stupidity, incompetence and lying’, says bishop
Serious abuse by priests could still go unreported, Church’s safeguarding chief admits
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church
Safeguarding – reconciling two perspectives.
The comments below this article, including those from Ian Elliott, author of one of the earlier reports, are worth reading.
Tuesday
The transcript for Tuesday is now published.
Media Reports:
Christian Today
Clergy burnt church files after being accused of covering up abuse, inquiry hears
Church Times
IICSA latest: the dean’s bonfire and the destroyed report at Chichester Cathedral
in other news related to safeguarding, the Church Times last Friday carried a report on the case of Matthew Ineson.
See Sex abuse survivor Matthew Ineson criticises ‘inaction’ of senior clerics in BBC programme.
Also, the Church of England Newspaper reports: Abuse survivor calls for senior bishops to resign over failures
Thinking Anglicans has reported on this case previously:
The TV programme mentioned in the above report was linked in this article.
Church of England issues statement about Matthew Ineson
Matthew Ineson responds to statement from NST
0 CommentsUpdated
Friday’s transcript is now available here.
Next week’s schedule is published here.
Statement from Archbishop of Canterbury on the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, IICSA (The archbishop is scheduled to appear on Wednesday)
Media reports and comment:
Church Times
Church must accept past faults, says Chichester diocesan Visitor Robert Bursell QC
‘I don’t recall hearing about Chichester’s problems,’ Lord Carey tells IICSA
Archdeacon tells IICSA: ‘I couldn’t believe a priest would lie to me’
Leader Comment: A shambles is no safeguard
Letter to the Editor from Andrew Graystone Bishops ought to clarify the change in culture on abuse (scroll down for this letter)
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church IICSA – A promise to ‘change the culture’ of the Church?
19 CommentsTranscripts for these two days are available:
Wednesday 14 March
Note: this item has been removed from the IICSA website, presumably this is only temporary.
The appearance on Wednesday of former Archbishop Rowan Williams generated a increase in media attention:
Guardian Williams: church’s old views on gay clergy led to desire not to judge sexual activities
Telegraph Church overlooked sexual abuse by bishop because he was gay, former Archbishop suggests
Press Association via Daily Mail Sexist Church culture may be linked to failure to tackle child abuse – Williams
Church Times Lord Williams backs abuse survivors’ demand for independent safeguarding body at IICSA
Christian Today Church ‘overcompensated’ for conservative stance on homosexuality by treating paedophile bishop lightly
The Tablet Rowan Williams admits failings over C of E child abuse
The Times Archbishop ‘shielded from sex abuse row’ (£) and this is further explained in a report at Christian Today Church’s approach to abuse was to ‘stonewall’ and ‘say nothing’, says Rowan Williams’ former aide
Further reports:
BBC Child abuse inquiry: Diocese had ‘major issue’
Christian Today Church has bias against abuse victims and ‘culture of deference and defensiveness’, bishop admits
Church Times I was shocked by what I found in Chichester diocese, Dr Warner tells IICSA hearing
The transcript for Tuesday 13 March is available here. Witnesses were The Revd Canon and Worshipful Dr Rupert Bursell QC, Professor Julie Macfarlane, and Bishop Mark Sowerby.
Media reports:
Church Times Abuse survivor tells IICSA of her battle for justice
2 CommentsThe UK government recently held a consultation on Changes to the teaching of Sex & Relationship Education and PSHE.
The Church of England has now published its response to that consultation:
Changes to the teaching of Relationships and Sex Education and PSHE: A call for evidence Church of England Education Office Response
And in addition Nigel Genders the Church of England’s Chief Education Officer has published comment on this response, here.
This has had quite a lot of media coverage, for example:
BBC Sex education: Schools ‘should promote celibacy’, says Church of England
Times Educational Supplement Pupils should be taught that abstinence and celibacy are ‘positive life choices’, C of E says
Telegraph Teach pupils the value of abstinence and celibacy, says Church of England
7 CommentsThe case was previously reported here.
The following notice has been published by the Diocese of Oxford:
Revd. Timothy Davis | March 2018 | Tribunal and penalty
In December 2017, the Revd Tim Davis was found guilty of conduct unbecoming or inappropriate to the office and work of a clerk in Holy Orders through the abuse of spiritual power and authority over a person then aged 15-16.
The penalty imposed on Tim Davis was that he should cease to hold office with immediate effect, and he now stands prohibited from the exercise of holy orders for a period of two years (as announced on Saturday 10th March). Should he wish to return to ministry after the period of prohibition then he will be required to undertake a formal risk assessment.
The findings of the tribunal are instructive for anyone still doubting that spiritual abuse exists, and we commend the young man and his family for their courage and grace throughout this process. The Diocese of Oxford continues to offer pastoral support to all involved.
There is some additional information at Law & Religion UK.
1 CommentThe transcript of today’s hearing, which was entirely devoted to the evidence of Bishop Wallace Benn, is now available.
Media reports:
Church Times
Don’t blame me for safeguarding blunders, former Bishop of Lewes, Wallace Benn, tells IICSA hearing
Christian Today
Bishop claims he was ‘scapegoated’ over child sex abuse allegations
Bishop admits ‘hunch’ about paedophile priest but says he was powerless to stop him
The following item was written before today’s hearing and reflects the evidence given last week by others:
Chichester Observer
Revealed: How former bishop failed to report paedophile priests
The transcript from Friday’s hearing is now published.
The timetable for next week’s hearings is available here.
Monday includes Bishop Wallace Benn
Tuesday includes Bishop Mark Sowerby
Wednesday includes Bishop Martin Warner and former archbishop Rowan Williams
Thursday includes Bishop Nicholas Reade
Friday includes Graham Tilby
Media reports:
Christian Today
Bishop ‘filleted’ clergy files to remove evidence, abuse inquiry told
Are conservative evangelicals more likely to protect child abusers?
0 CommentsUpdated Friday afternoon
We published late Wednesday evening a statement from the Church of England’s National Safeguarding Team regarding Matthew Ineson.
Matthew Ineson has now issued a response:
Call for the Resignation of Archbishop John Sentamu and Bishop Steven Croft
It is confirmed by the National Safeguarding Team of the Church of England that in 2013 Archbishop John Sentamu received, and replied to, a letter from me to him disclosing sexual abuse by a priest I had suffered as a youngster. An internal memo which has been acquired via a data protection act request by me and is dated 25th July 2016 confirms this and clearly states ‘I have also a copy of the Archbishop of York’s letter to Ineson, dated 2nd July 2013, which acknowledges that he had read a letter written to Steven Croft, copied to the Archbishop of York, which repeated the disclosure of an alleged criminal offence.’
The letter I sent to John Sentamu was a copy of a letter I had sent to Bishop Steven Croft, dated 1st June 2013, which not only contained details of my sexual abuse, but also complained bitterly of the failure to act on my disclosures by Bishop Steven Croft and Bishop Peter Burrows. By this time Steven Croft had ignored three disclosures from me, two by telephone and this letter of 1st June.
John Sentamu replied saying he had read the letter and assured me of his prayers and best wishes through this testing time. Beyond that I was not offered any care, no support was given, I was not encouraged to report my abuse to the police nor was my disclosure(s) passed to the relevant church safeguarding officer or any other authority by him.
In the statement by The Church of England’s National Safeguarding Team issued yesterday (above) it is claimed that the Archbishop did not fail to act on any disclosure made, because the responsibility to respond and act lay with the diocesan bishop, namely Steven Croft. The National Safeguarding Team are clearly stating here that Steven Croft should have acted. He didn’t and my abuser, The Revd Trevor Devamnaikkam, was left 4 ½ years after my first disclosure to Steven Croft and 4 years after my correspondence with John Sentamu to potentially abuse again. He was charged in May 2017 with 6 serious charges of sexual abuse against me. Steven Croft has admitted on several occasions that I disclosed my abuse to him in the media over the past 16 months. I have pursued the complaint against Steven Croft’s failures several times with the church who have blocked any attempt at investigation into his failures. The National Safeguarding team now acknowledge those failures and I call on Steven Croft to resign with immediate effect.
I also call upon Archbishop Sentamu to resign with immediate effect for failing to act on my disclosure to him and again, leaving my abuser for 4 years to potentially abuse again.
Both these bishops failed to act in accordance with Church of England Safeguarding guidelines and left children and the vulnerable at risk of harm for over 4 years. Both bishops neglected their duties regarding safeguarding and John Sentamu neglected his duties by also not exercising his authority in terms of discipline over Steven Croft or Peter Burrows. He is in effect passing the buck and saying ‘not my job’. Is it now the case that clergy, even bishops and archbishops, can ignore disclosures of abuse by simply saying ‘not my job’. There was also a complete lack of pastoral care by both of them.
In the past two days two more people have contacted me to say that some of the bishops I have complained about have also failed them in a similar manner.
Further, the memo addressed to the Archbishop in June 2017 refers to ‘survivors’ of Trevor Devamanikkam in the plural. The National Safeguarding Team dismiss this as being untrue and due to human error by the author of the memo. However, John Sentamu acknowledged, dated and signed this memo as ‘noted’. He therefore read that there were multiple victims of abuse and took no action or questioned this. This again potentially left other vulnerable people open to abuse. It may or may be the case that there were other victims of Trevor Devamanikkam. That is not the issue here. The issue is that John Sentamu was told in writing there was, acknowledged that and did not act as required to do so.
Also, I challenge the assertion that the National Safeguarding Team did not know that Trevor Devamanikkam had previously attempted to take his own life before his suicide. They did know, and no risk assessments or checks were carried out on him by anyone in The Church of England at all including the National Safeguarding team, anyone at diocesan level or by the diocesan bishop himself, Steven Croft.
Once again I call for the immediate resignations of John Sentamu and Steven Croft for breaching safeguarding procedures which they are required to do by virtue of the public office they each respectively hold as bishops of the established church. If they refuse to do so, and the church refuses to hold them to account, we once again have the Church of England complicit and colluding with the abuse of children and the vulnerable and taking no action to prevent it.
Matthew Ineson
Update
Archbishop Cranmer has responded to this with a lengthy article: The Church of England’s National Safeguarding Team is either untruthful or incompetent (or quite possibly both)
This article contains a detailed discussion about the various time limits applicable and the procedures for applying for extensions thereof. Its accuracy on these details has been queried. I’ll deal with this initially in the Comments below.
35 Comments