The Diocese of Lichfield has launched a new DVD to provide basic Safeguarding training in parishes.
"Safeguarding is a vital part of our work to ensure that churches are safe places for all people to do all the things that the church is for: discovering the heart of God, growing as disciples, reaching new generations, transforming communities and practising generosity." says the Bishop of Stafford, Rt Revd Geoff Annas who chairs the Diocese's Safeguarding committee.
"We are all too familiar with the headlines when things go wrong, but behind the headlines that vanish quickly are many cases where people hold hurt and pain for years and decades. We are doing our utmost to minimise the chances of future cases whilst remaining realistic that perpetrators of abuse are often cunningly deceptive."
The Diocese's Safeguarding Officer, Revd Charmian Beech says:
"We insist that all clergy, as well as those who work closely with children and vulnerable adults are trained, and we encourage all PCCs and appropriate volunteers to also spend the relatively short time required to become and remain aware of the issues.
"We've carried out an audit over the past months of the training done in parishes. Much of the awareness training is provided by local authorities and is excellent, but some parishes have struggled to access this training. We deliver some training ourselves, in person, but it is impossible to cover all our churches in this way. So we came up with the idea of producing a DVD which could be played at every PCC in the diocese."
The DVD, lasting just 25 minutes, is being distributed to each PCC during May at the Archdeacon's Visitations, an annual service repeated for groups of churches where churchwardens are inducted and commissioned for the coming year.
"We know that being faced with the topic of safeguarding can be uncomfortable for many" says Revd Beech. "It can bring up a mixture of emotions, so wed like to thank the hundreds and thousands of people who volunteer for the many hours of preparation, prayer, work and care given in serving vulnerable people of all ages through our churches.
"It is an enormous expression of generosity, (one of our diocesan Five Themes) which still makes churches one of the most active grass-roots organisations in Britain."
More about the Safeguarding services and resources from the diocese can be found on our Safeguarding Web Pages. The video can also be found on ourYouTube Channel.