Safeguarding - Protecting the most vunerable in our parish

Today, myself and a number of parishoners who work with children and vunerable adults attended a Safeguarding day at Our Lady and St Edwards.

The day was run by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. who is the Safeguarding Co-ordninator for Lancaster Diocese. Safeguarding describes our response when children and vunerable adults are exposed to harm and the focus is very much on prevention and protection. The Church has always sought to promote the welfare of people but recent cases of abuse have only served to reinforce our duty of care.

To this end, the diocese has established a structure to help support safeguarding including a Safeguarding Commission. The primary purpose of the Commission is to promote a culture of safeguarding in all parishes. Jane is a qualified Social Worker, responsible for managing all safeguarding work within The Diocese in collaboration with The Safeguarding Commission, The Bishop and Congregation leaders.

For someone who has been abused, the prospect of speaking out is often a significant step towards healing and recovery

 If you have concerns, we want to offer you the opportunity to be listened to, to have your concerns taken seriously, dealt with sensitively and acted upon as necessary.

We are fortunate to have two safeguarding representatives within the parish, Mike Simpson and Brenda Scales. They coordinate checks for all of our volunteers working with vunerable adults and children via the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). They are also the first port of call, should you have any concerns or require advice. Safeguarding is however the responsibility of everyone within our catholic community and we must all work as a team.

To find out more about Safeguarding, visit the Lancaster Diocese Safeguarding Page