What safeguarding training do I need to complete and where can I find it?

PATHWAY

REQUIRED

RECOMMENDED

LINKS

• All church officers, staff in church bodies, and bellringers.
• Anyone going on to complete any other safeguarding learning pathway.

• Anyone wanting or needing a basic awareness of safeguarding.

• Anyone holding the bishop’s licence, commission, authorisation, or permission – including clergy, those with permission to officiate (PtO), readers, licensed lay ministers (LLMs).
• Anyone (volunteers and employees) in a role which involves work with children, young people, or vulnerable adults, including
• tower captains and ringing teachers.
• Churchwardens
• Pre-ordination or licence students, prior to Stage 1 Panel.
• Vergers
• PCC members/lay chapter members/DBF trustees.
• Members of the Diocesan Safeguarding Advisory Panel.

This is designed for those people who play a lead role in shaping the culture of the church body concerned. This will always include:

• All clergy holding the bishop’s licence, commission, authorisation, or permission (including PtO where exemption has not been given) including honorary/assistant bishops and chaplains.
• All readers and LLMs holding the bishop’s licence (under Canons E6 and E8), together with all others who hold the bishop’s commission, authorisation, or permission to carry out similar ministerial functions (including PtO where exemption has not been given).

(Ordinands need to have completed the Leadership pathway before their diaconal ordination and lay ministers in training before they are

licenced, authorised or commissioned.)

• Non-executive members of chapter (unless their role in the diocese requires a higher level).
• Safeguarding officers/Leads in all church bodies.

It should also, according to the local context, include such other people who significantly influence the culture of that church body. These may include, for example, lay ministry staff employed by a PCC or Bishops’ Mission Order (BMO), locally appointed leaders of new worshipping communities, focal

ministers, and churchwardens.*

Tower captains at prominent towers (including cathedrals, towers with frequent visitors or people learning) and the district chair/district safeguarding lead of bellringing guilds/councils should complete the Leadership pathway.

The requirements for attendance for people in local leadership roles will be determined by agreement between the bishop/dean and their respective

safeguarding officer.

Where there is a determination that someone must undertake this pathway, that person then becomes a required attendee.

* Whilst in many contexts the level of influence of churchwardens may well not reach the threshold, it should be noted that this can increase significantly during vacancies.

This pathway is for members of the senior leadership team of a church body who have, in different ways, responsibility for, and involvement in, safeguarding matters:

• Archbishops
• Diocesan and suffragan bishops
• Provincial episcopal visitors
• Archdeacons, including associate archdeacons
• Deans
• Cathedral executive chapter members/residentiary canons (non-executive chapter members are trained at leadership level unless their role in the
• diocese requires a higher level)
• Bishops’ chaplains
• Diocesan Secretaries/chief of staff/chief executive/cathedral administrators
• Directors of communications
• Diocesan directors of ordinands and assistant diocesan directors of ordinands
• Wardens of readers/LLMs
• Directors of ministry
• Registrars
• Diocesan and cathedral safeguarding officers
• Cathedral directors of music/masters of choristers
• HR directors
• Senior chaplains to the armed forces
• Leaders of religious communities.

• Anyone holding the bishop’s licence, commission, authorisation, or permission (including clergy, PtO, readers, LLMs) or serving as an

officer of the bishop.

• Anyone (volunteers and employees) working with children, young people, or vulnerable adults, including Bishops Visitors and Pastoral Visitors.
• Safeguarding officers/safeguarding leads including designated safeguarding person in a religious community.
• Pre-ordination or licence students, prior to BAP or selection panel.

• All church officers
• PCC and Chapter members
• Members of the Diocesan Safeguarding Advisory Panel.

• Recruiting managers and anyone involved in the recruitment of church officers (employees, elected members, and volunteers).
• Those with responsibility for administering DBS.
• Safeguarding officers in all church bodies, including designated safeguarding person in a religious community.
• Ordinands during IME 1.

• Anyone holding PtO whose role does not meet the Leadership pathway criterion.

Where individuals hold more than one role, or serve more than one Church body, they should train at the highest required level.

It is recognised that the exercise of PtO (for both retired clergy and readers) can vary considerably.

As the main safeguarding Leadership pathway is now targeted at those people ‘who play a lead role in shaping the culture of the church body concerned’ those with PtO whose role meets this criterion must participate in the main safeguarding Leadership pathway.

Those with PtO whose role does not meet this criterion must participate in a bespoke PtO safeguarding learning pathway.

The decision about which pathway someone with PtO should take must be made by

the bishop or dean in consultation with the DSO/CSO and/or safeguarding trainer.

For those newly retired, the pathway individuals take should be decided at the point they start their new role.

For existing PtOs a formal decision based on consideration of a person’s role against the above criterion would need to be made within the diocese.

• Persons taking on the role of PSOs

• Existing PSOs

• Anyone undertaking the role of Link Person.

• Anyone undertaking the role of Support  Person.