Head of Presbyterian Church in Ireland to stand down over 'serious and significant failings' in safeguarding

Rev Dr Trevor Gribben also confirmed he was retiring as Clerk of the Assembly and General Secretary.

In a statement made during a press conference in Assembly Buildings, Belfast, this afternoon (Wednesday, November 12), the Rev Gribben said, “Following an internal investigation and report, it has become clear that there have been serious and significant failings in the central safeguarding functions of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland from the period 2009 to 2022.

"As a result of this, people have been placed at risk. We are aware of a number of people who have been harmed, and we believe there may well be others as yet unknown to us. We apologise unreservedly for this.

“The Church’s first and greatest concern about this is for those people who have suffered harm, and those who have been put at risk. The Presbyterian Church in Ireland profoundly regrets this, is deeply grieved, and will offer all possible support to those affected.”

The Moderator is the most senior office-bearer of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, which has around 200,000 members.

Dr Gribben added: “Although not directly responsible for the professional delivery of safeguarding within the Church, nonetheless serious and significant failings in our central safeguarding functions occurred partly during my tenure as General Secretary.

"In light of this, I have decided it would be best at this time for me to step aside from my current role as Moderator of the General Assembly, the Church’s chief public representative.

"I have therefore informed the Church’s General Council, and Charity Trustees, that I intend to stand down from the office of Moderator of the General Assembly at the end of this month, thus giving time to make arrangements for these duties to be fulfilled by others.

“In addition, I have asked, and been given permission to retire from my employed role as Clerk of the Assembly and General Secretary. I have made these decisions and taken these steps with the deepest personal regret that our central failings have caused such harm to those who deserve our protection the most.”

Further details of the safeguarding failings were provided by Dr David Bruce, Convener of the General Council of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland.

Dr Bruce said: “Ensuring the safety of all those who take part in the life and work of our congregations has long been a priority for us.

"Our current Safeguarding Team has identified a number of situations between 2009 and 2021, with one as late as 2022, where we have failed to deliver an adequate safeguarding service.

"In most instances, this involved a basic failure to follow our own Taking Care guidance. These failings were magnified by major gaps in necessary recordkeeping, so it is inevitable that we have not identified all situations where practice was unacceptable. The failures identified to date include:

• situations where we failed to make referrals to statutory authorities when these were required;
• situations where we did not respond adequately to concerns expressed to us about individuals in congregations;
• situations where we have failed to respond to people who, having suffered harm, have sought our help;
• situations where some offenders returning to worship in Church, following referrals to us by statutory bodies, were inadequately monitored."

In a statement made during the press conference, Dr Bruce said the person with lead responsibility for this work during these years is no longer in post.

He continued: “We are working closely in support of our current Safeguarding Team members to both follow up with those who have been let down where possible, and to improve our safeguarding governance arrangements and practice.

"In that respect, and to address these failings, we have taken the following main steps:

• we have liaised with appropriate statutory bodies in relation to both the overall failings we have identified, and individual poorly-handled situations;
• all situations where offenders requiring supervision when worshipping with us have been reviewed and appropriate arrangements have been put in place in each case;
• we have increased our staffing dedicated to safeguarding, and have reviewed and are updating both policies and procedures. You will appreciate this is an ongoing process that will continue in the months ahead;
• we have put in place arrangements for people who contact our Safeguarding Team to escalate their concerns if they believe they have not been responded to swiftly;
• we have enhanced the training curriculum being delivered to church leaders locally and also our central staff in Assembly Buildings;
• we are currently refreshing our governance framework and arrangements for raising concerns about practice, also termed whistleblowing, within our central staff team;
• we have set in place regular external cross-professional supervision for our Safeguarding Lead and Director;
• We have implemented Practice Standards for Safeguarding, reporting against these to a revised oversight body to the General Council, which I convene;
• We are commencing an audit of our safeguarding arrangements against a framework devised by the Safeguarding Board for Northern Ireland and will submit this once it is complete."

Dr Bruce went on to say he was “truly sorry” for the failings and the Church will do everything it can to “put in place better arrangements to prevent this occurring again”.