The assessments carried out by the Safeguarding Officer are focused on risk management and the provision of support to affected parties. They are not part of a disciplinary process, although there are clear links between the safeguarding and risk management process and the Church’s disciplinary process. Disciplinary processes focus on any type of concern or allegation which may amount to misconduct, whilst Safeguarding Officers (and SCMGs) are only involved in the management of safeguarding concerns or allegations.
The Clergy Discipline Measure 2003 and Clergy Discipline Rules 2005 set out the process to be followed while the Clergy Discipline Measure: Code of Practice and the Statutory Guidance provide additional guidance.
Anyone with a proper interest can bring an allegation of misconduct under the CDM, including complainants. This can happen before, during or after a safeguarding process under this Code has been initiated. In all cases, it is recommended that raising a CDM complaint is considered by the Safeguarding Officers and the SCMG at the earliest opportunity.
If proceedings under the CDM are initiated before or during a safeguarding process, Safeguarding Officers and other members of the SCMG should consider if the safeguarding process needs to be paused and if they need to wait for the outcome of the disciplinary process. Whilst this is not an obligation and the two processes can run in parallel, there are a number of considerations that will influence this decision:
- timing – Is the outcome of a disciplinary process imminent?
- risk level – Have measures to manage risk (e.g. suspension) already been put in place as part of the disciplinary process?
- duplication of process stages or steps – Has an investigation already been carried out as part of the disciplinary process? Can relevant aspects of that investigation be shared with the Safeguarding Officer and the SCMG, to avoid the complainant and the respondent being asked to provide the same information again?
- support – Whilst the disciplinary process is ongoing, do the complainant, the respondent and the parish or Church community affected have appropriate support?
The overarching principles to follow in such cases are:
- avoiding any duplication between the two processes, as far as possible;
- ensuring that support to the complainant, respondent and the parish or Church community is made available; and
- considering if any risks arising from the specific allegation are already managed under the disciplinary process, in which case the Safeguarding Officer or the SCMG may not need to undertake separate actions.
Safeguarding Officers may decide, in consultation with other members of the SCMG, to raise a CDM complaint against the respondent at the end of a safeguarding process although they should be mindful of the time limitations set out in the 2003 Measure. In such circumstances, any relevant information gathered during the safeguarding process should be shared with the bishop and form part of the complaint as supporting evidence.