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Safeguarding

As a big family we want everyone, both adults and children, to feel happy and safe as they participate in the life of the church. Safeguarding is a high priority in everything we do at St Chads.

Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility but it is overseen here by:

Rev Richard Pennystan – contactable on 0161 430 4652 or vicar@stchadsromiley.co.uk

Adrian Bassett Parish Safeguarding Officer (PSO) – contactable on safeguarding@stchadsromiley.co.uk

Diocesan Safeguarding Team – contactable on 01928 643 442 or safeguarding@chester.anglican.org.  

Safeguarding matters will be forwarded to the Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser (or the police if immediate action is required) and we will follow the advice given.

Out of Hours Support

The Diocese of Chester partners with thirtyone:eight and you can access their Safeguarding Helpline if the Diocesan Safeguarding Team is unavailable. Thirtyone:eight can be contacted on 0303 003 1111.

This also includes any safeguarding queries outside of office hours on weekdays and weekends. An Information Sharing Agreement between the two organisations will allow the Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser to receive a copy of the advice thirtyone:eight may offer the caller.

Church of England and Chester Diocese Safeguarding Policy

The Church of England safeguarding responsibilities for parishes are outlined in the House of Bishops’ Safeguarding Policy and Practice Guidance.  We adhere to the Chester Diocese Safeguarding Policy which incorporates the House of Bishop’s Safeguarding Policy and Guidance. If you wish to see more detail of the Diocese Safeguarding policies please click here.  

We have adopted the Church of England’s House of Bishops’ Promoting a Safer Church Safeguarding Policy and our PCC Statement, adopting the policy can be found here. 

You can find out more about the national policies and procedures at the Church of England's website.

Reporting a Safeguarding Concern

If you are concerned that a child or an adult is, or may be, at risk of abuse this should be reported immediately (and certainly within 24 hours) to the Parish Safeguarding Officer (PSO) or the clergy listed above. To report a concern online please click here.

If it is a non-emergency situation you can report this either in person to the PSO or by telephone, and they will then contact the Diocese Safeguarding Officer and ensure that we respond appropriately.  We will do everything we can to support the person at risk. If it is an Emergency situation, and you believe the child or adult is in immediate danger of significant harm, then you should call 999 before reporting it to a member of the clergy or Safeguarding Officer.

Safeguarding in our Kids and Youth groups

Throughout the work in our children’s groups we adhere to strict guidelines in order to ensure the children and youth in our care are kept safe and are treated equally and with awareness of individual needs.  This starts with the recruitment of volunteers for our children’s groups (all our children’s volunteers have a full DBS check), and continues within the organisation of the groups.  All our volunteers carry out the Church of England safeguarding training, in order to ensure they are clear on the church’s expectations in their roles, how they are to act with the children and what to do if they have concerns.

Safeguarding Adults

We understand that adults sometimes need extra support and we work with many who are vulnerable due to their circumstances, their age or their health. Our Pastoral visiting team and those who support vulnerable adults as part of their role at St Chads, all have a full DBS check and have taken the Diocese safeguarding training courses, visit and support many in our congregation for whom a friendly face and home assistance is helpful. Jane Higginbottom, our PSO, is available to discuss any concerns you may have.  Her contact details are above.

Support Helplines

If you wish to speak with someone outside the church the following helplines will be of assistance.

  • NSPCC for adults concerned about a child – 0808 800 5000
  • Childline for children and young people – 0800 1111
  • Action on Elder Abuse helpline – 0808 808 8141
  • 24-hour National Domestic Violence helpline – 0808 2000 247
  • NAPAC offer support and advice to adult survivors of childhood abuse – 0808 8010 331
  • Stop It Now preventing child sexual abuse – 0808 1000 900
  • Cruse bereavement helpline – 0808 808 1677
  • Family Lives support and advice on family issues – 0808 800 2222
  • MACSAS for people who have been abused by church officers – 0808 801 0340
  • Samaritans for people struggling to cope and needing someone to talk to – 116 123
  • Past Cases Review 2 two dedicated local listening provision – 0800 80 20 20
  • SurvivorsUK – 0203 598 3898
  • National Rape Crisis Helpline – 0808 802 9999
  • The Survivors Trust – 0808 801 0818
  • DeafHope (BSL) Text  Number – 07970 350366
  • National Association for People Abused in Childhood – 0808 801 0331
  • Modern Day Slavery Helpline – 0800 0121 0700
  • Thirtyone:eighton 0303 003 1111.  An independent Christian charity that offers a telephone listening service for adult survivors of abuse to talk about their experiences in detail and in confidence with a sensitive listener. 
  • Safe Spacesis a free and independent support service that provides a confidential, personal, and safe space for anyone who has been abused by someone in the Church. You can email them at safespaces@splitz.org or via telephone on 0300 303 1056.