Policy and Practice Guidance

All the policy and practice guidance on this page has been approved by the House of Bishops and must, where relevant, be followed by all Church Bodies and Church Officers.

The National Safeguarding Team has advised that the following documents have been removed from their website and are no longer to be used:

• Parish Safeguarding Handbook
• Protecting all God’s Children (2019)
• Promoting a Safe Church (2006)

Please could we ask you not to refer to these documents going forward, and to dispose of any hard copies you may have.

Practice Guidance

All practice guidance can now be accessed via the Safeguarding e-manual, which holds parish resources temporarily while the Parish Safeguarding Toolkit is being developed. This is expected to be released in January 2026. The other documents will be/have been subsumed into revised guidance or codes.

Safer Environment and Activities

Code of Safer Working Practice

Responding Well

Responding to Safeguarding Concerns or Allegations that relate to Children, Young People and Vulnerable Adults practice guidance (2018)

Responding to, assessing and managing concerns or allegations against church officers practice guidance (2017)

Responding well to domestic abuse practice guidance (2017)

Policy Statements

Promoting a Safer Church; House of Bishops policy statement (2017)

Recruitment of ex-offenders policy

Whistleblowing Policy (2020)