Safeguarding & Domestic Abuse
During office hours and for general enquiries please call Simon Warburton , Executive Director and Safeguarding Officer on 01543 306105 or 01543 306100 or email simon.warburton@lichfield-cathedral.org
For Out of Hours and Weekend Emergencies please call the Emergency Safeguarding number 0845 120 4550. This number will take you through to thirtyone:eight (formerly CCPAS) who will register your call and help with your emergency. We have an information sharing agreement with thirtyone:eight so that any details given will be forwarded onto the Diocesan Safeguarding team so we can follow up with you if necessary. You can choose to remain anonymous if you wish to when making the call but we will not be able to get any follow up information.
Download a copy of our Safeguarding Policies and Procedures here.
Download a copy of our Safeguarding Handbook here.
Download a copy of our Domestic Abuse policy here.
Download a copy of Lichfield Cathedral School's policy here.
Download the final report of Lichfield Cathedral’s SCIE Safeguarding Audit here.
Download a copy of Lichfield Cathedral's SCIE Safeguarding Audit Action Plan here.
Lichfield Diocese Safeguarding Team
Neil Spiring - Diocesan Safeguarding Advisor
Kim Hodgkins - Diocesan Advisor for the Safeguarding of Children
Julia Dixon - Safeguarding Training Advisor
Emma Smith - DBS Administrator
Lichfield Cathedral, the Diocese of Lichfield and the Church of England treats the duty of care it owes to children entrusted into our care very seriously.
The safety and security of children is of the utmost importance and guidelines and policies are part of the processes that have been adopted to ensure that all children taking part in activities in the Cathedral may do so in a loving, caring and safe atmosphere. In order to ensure this we have a Cathedral Safeguarding Policy as outlined in the House of Bishops revised Policy document "Protecting All God's Children" (2010)
We have a Cathedral Safeguarding Committee working together with the Diocesan team to cover all areas of Safeguarding. The Cathedral Safeguarding Committee meets bimonthly and is made up of representatives from the Cathedral staff, Chapter, Clergy, Diocese and School. There is a Cathedral representative on the Diocesan Safeguarding Panel which meets quarterly and acts in a support role to ensure the Diocese complies with its legal responsibilities.
Clergy, church officials, members of the congregation or public who suspect or who receive allegations of child abuse MUST report the matter immediately. They can call the Cathedral Safeguarding Officer, Diocesan Safeguarding Advisors or the Emergency Safeguarding number above. Neil Spiring and Kim Hodgkins are available to give advice on day to day issues of concern.
DBS (formerly CRB) - All DBS applications are now completed online and processed by thirtyone:eight. It should be stressed that a DBS check in itself is not the only aspect required to protect children and young people, and is only part of a process which is detailed in “Protecting All God’s children”.
For more information and key resources on Safeguarding and DBS please click here for the Safeguarding page of the Lichfield Diocesan website.
Annual Safeguarding Reports
The following has been prepared by the Safeguarding Officer on behalf of the Chapter of Lichfield Cathedral and the Chair of the Cathedral’s Safeguarding Committee. The purpose of the report is to provide the Bishop of Lichfield with an overview of the Cathedral’s safeguarding policy, procedures and practices.
Annual safeguarding report 2019
Annual safeguarding report 2020
Annual safeguarding report 2021
Annual safeguarding report 2022
Annual safeguarding report 2023
Safe Spaces: an independent service supporting survivors of church-related abuse
Launched in September 2020, this service offers support to survivors of church-related abuse whether or not a report has been made. This independent service is run by the charity Victim Support and funded by the Church of England together with the Catholic Church in England and Wales and the Church in Wales. It is free to access via telephone, email or web-chat.
Tel: 0300 303 1056 (answerphone available outside of opening times)
Email: safespaces@victimsupport.org.uk
WebChat - www.SafeSpacesEnglandandWales.org.uk