Meg Munn Chair of the National Safeguarding Panel Consultation on Learning Lessons Case Reviews
Colin Coward Unadulterated Love Freedom from power, control and abuse in congregational life
Johanna Stiebert ViaMedia.News Toxic Theology, the Bible and LLF (Living in Love and Faith)
Mark Bennet Surviving Church What is the purpose of it all? Some reflections on Safeguarding
Tim Wyatt Religion Media Centre Made in Hull: bishops appointed for breakaway Anglican church against same sex marriage
The article by Meg Munn on the proposed changes to the Lessons Learned Reviews should be read in conjunction with Graham’s article of November 2nd ‘A reflective Exercise’ on Proposed changes to Reviews.
The banal report by Meg Munn in no way reflects the seething anger that survivors experienced when being asked to comment on the proposed changes. The poor reception to the updated review is more likely to be the reason for delays than those stated by Meg Munn.
Reality check and transparency much needed with her report.
Meg Munn’s writing is always so banal that I no longer bother even reading it.
Trish, I admit to having a vested interest in that Keith Makin’s review is one of many LLCRs that would never have seen the light of day if anything even close to these current proposals had applied. I also write as someone who is utterly committed both to the C of E itself and to encouraging/persuading/cajoling it to take whistleblowers and survivors seriously, despite personally experiencing almost 6 years of the exact opposite.I regret the content and, what comes across as, the complacency of Meg Munn’s article. No wonder the majority of survivors refuse to engage with the Church and… Read more »
I was recently watching a documentary on how the industrial complex of Germany evaded paying recompense to those who survived slave Labour in their factories. First they kicked it into the long grass by postponing it till German reunification, then they held it back by opposing, making survivors take every step, then they made a settlement of 10bn Deutschmark half paid by the Government: the value of the Labour was estimated at 180bn Deutschmark. Survivors got a maximum of 7700 those not in mines or factories 2500. The litigation strategy looked uncannily like the playbook of the CofE.
Please write to Meg Munn and say so. Or respond to the consultation. Some of us (see my article linked above) are trying to change the narrative. It is a rather soulless task unless we support each other and allow for lively critique of emerging ideas. It can be done better. A Church that can roll out industrial levels of safeguarding training for volunteers is clearly capable of managing complex tasks like designing a reparations scheme or commissioning worthwhile reports. Why has it done the first and not the others … ? Of what is that diagnostic? People like Meg… Read more »
In terms of reparation, one fundamental duty (I believe) is to take responsibility for harm done, especially in cases where the institution could have done much better.
One basic reparation which is pretty much owed in various cases, as a duty of care, would be the cost involved in independent psycho-therapy for the victims.
Such provisions should be factored in to future church finances, and built in as an integral element of safeguarding responsibilities. The provisions should, of course, also be made available in various cases from the past.
So long as the money for this isn’t coming out of parishioners pockets. Why should the person in the pew now be paying for mistakes made by people in the past, over which they probably had no say? Parishioners don’t decide to appoint people to posts or move them, likewise they don’t run diocesan centralised safeguarding and (as far as I know) cannot influence that even through election to diocesan synod. I am fairly sure the first thing dioceses (or the C of E centrally) will do is tell the contributing bodies to pay up if they are told they… Read more »