Church of England delays creation of independent abuse watchdog

The Church of England voted on Tuesday to keep programs aimed at protecting children from abuse and reviewing abuse cases within the church’s existing infrastructure. The church’s leaders opted not to move forward with a proposal that would create a fully independent body outside the church tasked with reviewing all instances of alleged abuse. The church said it wanted to look further into the legality and practicability of creating an independent body before it chose to do so.

What did church leaders have to say about this? Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell said he was disappointed that the church was delaying the creation of an independent body that would help church leaders better handle abuse cases. Bishop Philip North supported church leaders’ willingness to look into the creation of an independent body to handle abuse cases, adding that Tuesday’s vote allowed church leaders to focus on what they could do in the short term.

What are church leaders doing right now to better combat abuse? While the church’s leaders look into the legality of an independent watchdog, the church will set up diocese-level bodies to review abuse allegations, according to an outline of the church’s decision. The church will endeavor to prioritize protecting survivors and victims of abuse during any investigations, the motion says. The church encouraged all levels of its structure to remain vigilant in safeguarding against abuse.

Dig deeper: Read my report in The Sift about former Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby resigning over a mishandled abuse case.