In September 2025, Anna participated a two-day in-depth safeguarding training online for people with disability, targeted at people in safeguarding leadership positions. This is the third in series of 7
Safeguarding Roles, Approaches
There are several roles of the safe church team.
There are many challenges within the roles that safe church people take on, including time constraints, the amount of workload, resources available, and being able to build capacity and provide training for frontline workers.
The team’s approach to safeguarding can be problematic when blame is placed, there is a heavy-handed approach, realities are disregarded, and further distress is caused. The approach of the organisation is problematic when there is a lack of mandate, or only a compliance focus, a lack of resourcing, which leads to key people not being included, or only reacting not preventing, and a lack of clarity around roles and responsibilities.
There are however many skills of those within the safeguarding team. These are technical skills, trauma informed practices and approaches, leading with influence and being leaders for cultural change. Leading with influence involves having a collaborative approach and also fostering, coaching and inspiring others to have good practice too.
Have good communication skills with a wide range of people. It is important to have good management, all the way from the board to frontline workers. It is also important to always have a continuous improvement approach to your work.
How does this all apply to congregations and leaders who are not part of the Placements and Safe Church Team in the Synod office?
Leaders in congregations can face issues with making sure everyone has the appropriate checks and safeguarding measures in place and can have limited access to resources including training. Workload may also be an issue, particularly if the person managing this is a volunteer and does not have as much time to commit to this work. Congregations need to make sure that there is a mandate that they follow, they are focused on enacting safety measures as well as being compliant, key people can be included in safeguarding measures, prevention is occurring, and people know what their roles and responsibilities are for keeping others safe.
Some strategies for good safeguarding are to tell people’s stories, build a network of safeguarding champions, appeal to a range of motivations for keeping people safe, invite feedback and welcome what comes, be willing to share information, manage vicarious trauma, and defer or refer to experts when required. Ideally, there should be structural support for safeguarding and a strong mandate from the top that is reinforced at senior levels. There should be collective responsibility for safeguarding people and this should be independent to anything else so that safeguarding is not contingent on anything else. Regular communication about safeguarding should be provided which give value and tips and share learnings. These could be through posters displayed at church or other church activities. Communication could also be through case studies, regulatory changes and resources, which could be shared at church council meetings or meetings of other key leaders. Training should be offered alongside online modules and team talks over lunch could be held. People should support each other and you should look after yourself too.