The Church of England issued this press release this morning.
Bishop of Stepney to be new lead safeguarding bishop
16/01/2023
The Bishop of Stepney, Joanne Grenfell, is to be the Church of England’s new lead safeguarding bishop, taking over from Bishop Jonathan Gibbs who leaves the role at the end of March, when his three-year term ends.
Bishop Joanne, who will attend the House of Bishops, will work closely with the national director of safeguarding, Alexander Kubeyinje, who took up the role in September. As the Church continues to develop its safeguarding practice, there will be a particular focus on responses to and implementation of the recommendations from the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, IICSA and the Church’s second Past Cases Review, PCR2, published at the end of 2022.
Bishop Joanne will chair the National Safeguarding Steering Group (NSSG), the delegated House of Bishops body responsible for making national safeguarding decisions, and will work closely with the deputy lead bishops for safeguarding, the Bishop of Bristol, Viv Faull and the Bishop of Birkenhead, Julie Conalty.
Both as a former archdeacon and currently as an area bishop in London Diocese, Bishop Joanne has chaired a number of safeguarding reviews and currently is the diocesan safeguarding lead, working closely with the Bishop of London. Bishop Joanne also chairs the national working group looking at the Seal of the Confessional.
Bishop Joanne said: “I believe that how the Church of England deals with safeguarding is of the utmost importance. It reveals our values and identity as a Church and is therefore a matter of spiritual integrity. I am committed to working for culture change, drawing on the wisdom of survivors and engaging with NST colleagues and leaders across the Church of England. My aim is that together we will not only prevent church-based abuse now, but also deal honestly, thoroughly, and proactively with what has previously been perpetrated and covered up.”
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, said: “I am grateful to Bishop Jonathan who, as lead safeguarding bishop, has led the Church’s response to the IICSA and PCR2 reports, leading on the response both to the recommendations and the important calls for change from survivors. While recognising the safeguarding failures of the Church, Bishop Jonathan has been committed to seeking change in our safeguarding culture and practice.
“I am now very pleased to welcome Bishop Joanne to the role of lead safeguarding bishop. I commend her commitment and experience as well as her willingness to take up this role, which is a vital part of the work of the Church. I am aware of the immense time commitment that this role rightly involves and pray for Bishop Joanne as this new chapter begins.”
Is a three year term of office a good idea? Would it not be be better to have the role for longer? Perhaps it is so stressful three years is as long as anyone can manage
I agree that continuity is key – but I equally rate +Joanne very highly and so feel this is a wise and safe pair of hands to be entrusted something so vital and critical.
I wish there was more recognition that not all abuse is sexual and not all abuse is against children.
David, I strongly agree. A cynic might argue that to be more pro-active in recognising other forms of abuse would open up a hornets’ nest for the Church of England, when it has already become more than abundantly clear that the Church cannot credibly handle abuse cases which either regard children or are sexual in nature, so hence the strong and repeated calls for Anglican safeguarding to be made independent of the Church. I am always struck by the persistence of ‘vulnerable adult’ within Anglican safeguarding terminology when many secular bodies and other Christian denominations (e.g. the United Reformed Church)… Read more »
Absolutely! All women bishops???
One of the most able new (ish) bishops.
Perhaps the Bishop of Stepney might take an early opportunity to comment on the blog post by Jasvinder Sanghera on behalf of the Independent Safeguarding Board. Commenting on the open letter to the Charity Commission, she writes The Independent Safeguarding Board has a responsibility to make clear recommendations and to seek assurances of their implementation. ‘Don’t Panic – Be Pastoral’ was published on the Independent Safeguarding Board’s website on 3 November 2022 and sent to key Church of England leaders, including the National Safeguarding Team. It provides 38 recommendations, 46 secondary recommendations grouped into specific focused areas and 16 key… Read more »