Introduction
All Church personnel are required to follow the policy for the Catholic Church in Ireland and adhere to the seven safeguarding standards. However, there are a number of instances where other child safeguarding policies need to be considered in terms of child safeguarding. These are detailed below.
- When religious or clerics are ministering on behalf of a diocese
If a religious or cleric ministers for a diocese outside of that to which they belong, they are bound by the procedures of that Church body, including safeguarding and notification of allegations. Therefore, if a suspicion, concern, knowledge or allegation is raised with that member while in the ministry of that Church body, they must report it using the safeguarding procedure of that Church body.
If there is an allegation against the member while working with another Church body, the following will be observed:
- If the allegation relates to an incident that took place in the Church body (other than that to which the cleric or religious belongs), the reporting procedures will be initiated by the DLP of that Church body in accordance with their safeguarding procedures. In this instance, the name of the DLP of the Church body for whom the respondent is ministering should be displayed as the contact person for reporting suspicions, concerns, knowledge or allegations);
- The respondent will either directly inform their own Bishop, or give permission for the DLP of the organisation to inform the diocese of which the respondent is a member;
- Any decision to suspend the member from that diocese rests with the management of the Church body for whom the cleric or religious is ministering;
- Any decision to remove the member from ministry rests with the Bishop of the Diocese to which the cleric or religious belongs;
- Internal Church processes regarding the care and management of the respondent (Standard 4) will be followed upon conclusion of any criminal investigation and other organisational disciplinary proceedings.
If there is an allegation against the member, which is outside of the ministry undertaken as part of the Church body (other than that to which the cleric or religious belongs), the following will be observed:
- The DLP of the diocese to which the respondent belongs will report using the process outlined in 2.2 (- Reporting allegations of abuse). In this instance, the name of the DLP of the diocese to which the respondent belongs should be displayed as the contact person for suspicions, concerns, knowledge or allegations (S4.29);
- Church procedures will be followed in relation to preliminary investigation and management of the respondent, following the guidance outlined in Standard 4;
- Consideration will be given to the appropriateness of sharing the information about the allegation with the other organisations. Advice from Tusla should be sought and discussed with the respondent, whose permission may be required to share the information.
- When working/volunteering for another organisation
If a member of Church personnel works for another external organisation, they are bound by the policies and procedures of that organisation, which include safeguarding and notification of allegations. Therefore, if a suspicion, concern or allegation is raised with that member while in the employment of that organisation, they must report it using the safeguarding procedures of the organisation.
If there is an allegation against the member while working with that organisation, the following will be observed:
- If the allegation relates to that organisation, the reporting procedures will be initiated by the DLP of that organisation in accordance with their safeguarding procedures;
- The respondent will either directly inform their Bishop or give permission for the DLP of the organisation to inform their Church Authority;
- Any decision to suspend the member from that organisation rests with the management of the organisation;
- Any decision to remove the member from ministry rests with the Bishop;
- Internal Church processes regarding the care and management of the respondent (Standard 4) will be followed upon conclusion of any criminal investigation and other organisational disciplinary proceedings.
If there is an allegation against the member, which is outside of the work undertaken as part of the organisation, the following will be observed:
- The DLP of the Church body will report using the process outlined in 2.2;
- Church procedures will be followed in relation to preliminary investigation and management of the respondent, following the guidance outlined in Standard 4;
- Consideration will be given to the appropriateness of sharing the information about the allegation with the other organisation; advice from Tusla should be sought and discussed with the respondent, whose permission may be required to share the information.
3. If children are using Church property as part of Church-related activity with staff or volunteers from an external organisation
This situation can occur in a number of different ways, including schools visiting the Church as part of sacramental preparation, altar servers going from school to the church and back again, school choirs practising in the Church, and youth groups on retreat in Church property that are being facilitated by Church personnel.
Each of these situations is individual and should be considered on a case-by-case basis. The Bishop should agree with the external organisation in writing:
- Whose safeguarding policy applies and when;
- Who is responsible for the children and when;
- Which DLP will take responsibility for reporting allegations.
This should be recorded and stored appropriately using the guidance in Appendix 3.
If the Bishop presides over communities outside Ireland
If this occurs, the policy of the Catholic Church in Ireland and the associated indicators applicable under the seven safeguarding standards should apply alongside local legislation.
If there is a concern about reporting allegations of abuse to the local statutory authorities, advice should be sought from the NBSCCCI as to how to proceed.