The STOP CHURCH CHILD ABUSE campaign is an alliance of clergy sexual abuse survivors, charities that support survivors, specialist lawyers and interested individuals working in the field of child safeguarding. We have come together to investigate and highlight the serious safeguarding failures of church institutions, from 1954 to the present.
We call on the Government to consider the creation of a new statutory body to police and enforce minimum national standards of child-safeguarding. We envisage such a body having similar powers to the Health & Safety Executive. The Health & Safety Executive operates for the safety of workers. Children are an even more vulnerable group. The absence of a powerful statutory body dedicated to their protection is a serious defect.
The introduction of compulsory incorporation will establish a system of accountability and will deal with unincorporated organisations such as churches.
Such a body will:
We have exhausted all attempts at self-regulation. It has failed. Attitude and practice has not improved, even after the uncovering of successive scandals.
Our recommendations are ones of necessity, to redress the power-imbalance between children and large institutions that would seek, for their own purposes, to care for them. It is the role of the state to protect the weak and the vulnerable. Nobody else can or will.
For 20 years the leaders of the Catholic Church and the Church of England/Wales have repeatedly stated that they will respond appropriately to reports of child sexual abuse. Despite these assurances, many prosecutions have revealed that Church authorities have covered up past reports of child abuse and allowed clergy to remain in post despite allegations and in some cases past convictions for child sexual offences. In many reported cases further child abuse has taken place.
We need to raise this issue with Ministers direct. An important way to do this is by letting ministers know via our MPs that there are many members of the public who support the call for an inquiry.
Please write to your MP by e-mail. You can find your MPs name and address by going to www.writetothem.com and putting in your postcode.
You can also book an appointment with your MP in his/her Friday constituency surgery. Please take along our summary document and explain that you want a letter writing to the appropriate minister.
Please tell us you have taken this action by e-mailing to enquiries@stopchurchchildabuse.co.uk
Please see the book setting out evidence and solutions – https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=node%3D58&field-keywords=responding+badly&rh=n%3A58%2Ck%3Aresponding+badly
All proceeds to MACSAS (Clergy survivors support)
Download Campaign Summary (word doc.)
click here ↓
Download Evidence Document (word doc.)
click here ↓
CAMPAIGN UPDATE 2012/13
Click here – Updating Report for SCCA Campaign 19.02.13
For more information contact:
David Greenwood, Chairman
STOP CHURCH CHILD ABUSE.
enquiries@stopchurchchildabuse.co.uk - tel : 01924 882000
Phil Johnson,Chair of MACSAS (Minister And Clergy Sexual Abuse Survivors)
Jo Kind, MACSAS exec member
Paul Campbell, MACSAS exec member
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