Section 4G: Elected Members

Section 1: Triage and Referrals

Section 2: Initial Contact

Section 3: Safeguarding Case Management Group

Section 5: Risk Assessment

Section 6: Outcomes, Closure and Long-term risk management

Introduction and definitions

This section sets out the steps, requirements and guidance to be followed in response to safeguarding concerns and allegations where:

• it covers a recent or non-recent concern or allegation; and
• the respondent is alive;
• the respondent is a lay person;
• the respondent has been elected to a post or office

As outlined in Section 4F of this Code, concerns of failure to follow safeguarding requirements may be managed under this pathway, but only in cases in which the circumstances in that section are met. A separate pathway for the management of posthumous safeguarding allegations is included in Section 4D.

Structure

This Section is structured into a series of steps that need to be followed when managing allegations involving elected members. Some steps and requirements may need to be followed in a different order to that presented in this Section, to reflect the specific circumstances of each case.  This should only be done on the advice of statutory services or a Regional Safeguarding Lead (on behalf of the NST).

Definitions

For the purposes of this section, an “elected representative” is any person who has been elected to a trustee role in the Church. This includes, but is not limited to:

• members of Parish Church Councils (PCC)[1], including specific officeholders such churchwardens
• members of Cathedral Chapters

It is important to note that parish clergy are ex-officio members of their PCCs[2]  and Cathedral Chapters[3] will also include members of clergy. Where this applies, the clergy pathway (Section 4A) will take precedence, but there may be considerations included in this current pathway that are relevant – for instance, responsibilities deriving from charity law and those dimensions linked to an individual’s role as a trustee. Similarly, readers and lay workers may be part of a PCC, but any allegations or concerns raised about them should be managed as a volunteer with a cross-check to this section to ensure that any responsibilities deriving from charity law and that person’s role as a trustee have been considered.

In rare circumstances, Church Bodies may have employed trustees. In those cases, this guidance must be followed in conjunction with the employees’ pathway (Section 4E) within this Code.

Where a person is elected to deanery, diocesan, or the General Synod, they usually discharge such responsibilities secondary to a role that they already hold in a parish. This Code does not apply to them in their role as members elected to a synod.  For example, if an allegation is brought against a member of clergy who is also a member of the General Synod’s House of Clergy, the “clergy pathway” within this Code would be followed.

Expectations regarding the conduct of elected representatives

As trustees of a charity, elected representatives have specific responsibilities under charity law and should follow the Charity Commission’s safeguarding guidance.^[4] Specifically, elected representatives play a key role in protecting their staff, volunteers and the beneficiaries of their charity, and in managing any safeguarding risks that arise in relation to any of these groups. As such, any safeguarding concerns or allegations raised about an elected representative represents a serious concern in terms of specific behaviour, and in the governance of a Church Body. As senior Church Officers, elected representatives who become respondents to safeguarding concerns or allegations should ensure that they productively engage with safeguarding processes, recognising that a failure to do so could significantly impact the trust that beneficiaries, donors, volunteers and others put in that Church Body, its governance and mission. In addition, elected representatives will have specific responsibilities that arise from canon and ecclesiastical law.

Disqualifications and vacation of office

Under the Charities Act 2011, a person is disqualified from being a charity trustee under a number of different circumstances, including:

• if they have been convicted of a terrorism, money laundering, misconduct in public office, perjury or perverting the course of justice offence, or any other offence involving dishonesty or deception; and
• if they have been removed, in the past, from an officer, employee or trustee role in a charity by an order from the Charity Commission or the High Court, on the grounds of misconduct.

Under the Church Representation Rules, Rule 68 states that a person is disqualified from holding a role in a PCC if they:

• are included in a barred list; or
• have been convicted of an offence mentioned in Schedule 1 to the Children and Young Persons Act 1933 (namely, a violent or sexual offence against a child).

The same disqualifications apply to members of Cathedral Chapters. These are outlined in section 36 of the Cathedrals Measure 2021.

In rare circumstances, the bishop of a diocese can waive these disqualifications, but they must consult the Safeguarding Officer before deciding to do so. The advice of the Safeguarding Officer must be recorded, along with the bishop’s ultimate decision. If the bishop goes against the advice of the Safeguarding Officer, the Safeguarding Officer must raise this with the NST.

It is also important to note that there are a range of other disqualifications that apply to PCC members, which are captured under the Church Representation Rules and the  Churchwardens Measure 2001.

If a person is found to meet the above disqualifications when they apply or they are nominated or elected for a role, they must not be allowed to continue the process or to take up the role. If a person is found to meet any of the above disqualifications whilst in role, they must be asked to vacate the role with immediate effect.