Rector’s Reflections
Thursday 13th February 2025
Is there a Safeguarding Crisis in the Church of England?
In yesterday’s reflections, I shared some of the reasons why some people would say that there is currently a Safeguarding Crisis in the Church of England.
But I balanced this with drawing attention to the other side of the coin: to the fact that current safeguarding practice within the Church of England is actually pretty rigorous, and there is nothing to suggest that the standard of safeguarding within the Church falls in any way below the standard of safeguarding within comparable institutions, for example within the education sector. Yes, the media draws attention to the Church’s occasional shortcomings in the area of safeguarding, and it is right to do so, but it fails to draw attention to the good practice which is the norm. To take a local example here in Oxfordshire: I do not remember Radio Oxford mentioning the fact an independent audit has recently judged safeguarding within the Diocese of Oxford to be exemplary. Perhaps this reflects a wider issue: good news is not often considered to be particularly newsworthy, whereas a regrettable but mercifully rare failure in good safeguarding practice has every chance of ending up in the headlines. It is a sad reflection on human nature that we so often find virtue to be boring, whereas vice flickers with illicit delight.
So the jury remains out on whether or not there is actually a “crisis” in current safeguarding practice across the Church of England. It would be generally agreed that the Church of England is not perfect when it comes to safeguarding. But no institution is perfect in this regard. The admitted failings of the Church in regard to safeguarding are serious and deeply to be regretted. But do they amount to a “Crisis”? Opinions differ.
But regardless of whether or not there is a “crisis” in our safeguarding practice, there remain significant issues in the background which need to be addressed. I will limit my attention to what I consider to be the three most important of these. I will consider one of them today, and leave the other two for tomorrow.
The first issue which needs to be addressed relates to the imbalance of power. In an ideal organisation, significant imbalances of power are recognised, and effective safeguards are put in place to prevent the abuse of power. Unfortunately, as a generalisation the Church of England fails to engage effectively with the recognition and supervision of power. The failure to deal effectively with significant imbalances of power can and does lead to bullying and other safeguarding issues.
Power in the Church of England comes in many different forms. For example, the bishop exercises almost complete power over the life of an ordinand, because it is not possible to get ordained unless you have the bishop’s approval. Similarly, a curate in training cannot go onto to the next stage of their ministry unless they are “signed off” by their bishop.
And then there is the question of applying for jobs in the Church, and seeking promotion. Bishop and other powerful figures have a considerable say in most appointment processes, and in the awarding of honours within the Church. Furthermore, if one wishes to seek promotion, promotion typically goes not just to well-qualified candidates, but to well-qualified candidates who are also seen to be the “right sort of person “ for the role. The definition of “right sort of person” is fortunately much broader than it used to be, but it’s still basically an exercise in patronage, whereby an existing elite seeks to perpetuate itself. You either get a tap on the shoulder or you don’t. That’s the way it is, and probably the way it always has been.
I should also add that there are sadly some instances where the imbalance of power is compounded by an atmosphere of fear. People are fearful of what the Church leader will do, or might do. This atmosphere of fear makes it hard if not virtually impossible to challenge the leader or to hold them to account. People are too frightened to raise their heads above the parapet.
In short, the contemporary Church of England needs to be much better at managing significant imbalances of power. This isn’t just about Church leaders. Each one of us is capable of abusing the power which we have been given. All of us need to hear again the words of Jesus: “Blessed are meek, for they shall inherit the earth”. Jesus did not say “Blessed are the powerful”. He said, “Blessed are the meek”. How often we forget this!