Our Diocesan safeguarding team includes the Vicar General for Safeguarding, Fr Joe Burke who ensures among other things that all visiting clergy are properly checked and vouched. Our Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser advises Bishop John Keenan on best practice and ensures that all and any allegations of abuse received by the Diocese are reported to the police immediately in accordance with the Church’s mandatory reporting policy. We also follow the Church’s National Safeguarding Policy ‘In God’s Image’, which has recently been updated and which you can find on the Bishops’ Conference website: https://www.bcos.org.uk/InGodsImageV2 .
Our Diocesan Safeguarding Administrator ensures that the training and PVG records of those working with children and vulnerable adults are up to date and assists with the annual safeguarding audit.
Parish Safeguarding Coordinators
This Diocese has at least one trained volunteer safeguarding co-ordinator in every parish. Their role is to ensure that all parish volunteers who work with children and vulnerable adults are recruited safely and receive safeguarding training. They are also a point of contact for anyone with any safeguarding concerns.
Diocesan Safeguarding Advisory Group
We have a Diocesan Safeguarding Advisory Group, which advises the Bishop on safeguarding policy and which cascades vital information and best practice to clergy, parishes and Catholic organisations working in the Diocese, such as SSVP, Ozanam, SPRED, the Wayside Club, the Lourdes Pilgrimage and the Diocesan Pilgrimage. Those organisations all have representatives on the Advisory Group.
Diocesan Risk Assessment and Management Team
In addition to the Advisory Group we have a Diocesan Risk Assessment and Management Team or DRAMT made up of mostly lay professionals. Our DRAMT is chaired by Julie Kelly, a very experienced criminal justice social worker. The DRAMT also has a retired police officer, a retired head teacher, two GPs, a teacher, a lawyer and a canon lawyer. One of the jobs of the DRAMT professionals is to identify and assess risk and make recommendations to the Bishop on risk management wherever required.