Regulator Reviews Presbyterian Church in Ireland’s Safeguarding Failings

The charity regulator in Northern Ireland is reviewing information from the Presbyterian Church in Ireland (PCI) after an internal review uncovered “serious and significant failings” in the charity’s central safeguarding functions.

PCI has said it “failed to deliver an adequate safeguarding service” between 2009 and 2022. In most instances, the church said, there was a basic failure to follow its own guidance, and the failings were “magnified by major gaps in necessary recordkeeping.”

Speaking at a news conference on 12 November, Trevor Gribben, PCI’s moderator, acknowledged that the failings in the central safeguarding functions placed people at risk. “We’re aware of a number of people who’ve been harmed, and we believe there may well be others as yet unknown to us,” he said. “We apologise unreservedly for this.” Gribben also announced that, because the failings occurred partly during his tenure as general secretary, he would step down at the end of the month.

The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland (CCNI) said it was reviewing the information provided by PCI under its serious incident reporting process. The Police Service of Northern Ireland said it was in ongoing discussions with PCI “to ensure that mechanisms are in place to support any victim who wishes to make disclosures.”

David Bruce, convener of PCI’s general council, said the safeguarding failures included instances where the charity did not make referrals to statutory authorities when required. He said PCI also failed to respond adequately to concerns about individuals in congregations, let down people who suffered harm and sought the church’s help, and did not adequately monitor some offenders returning to worship after referrals to the charity by statutory bodies.

“The person with lead responsibility for this work during these years is no longer in post,” Bruce said at the same news conference. “We’re working closely in support of our current safeguarding team members to both follow up with those who’ve been let down where possible, and to improve our safeguarding governance arrangements and practice.”

Since then, PCI has implemented actions to address the failings, including increasing its safeguarding staffing and reviewing its policies and procedures.

Bruce said the church’s primary concern was “the people who’ve been harmed, placed at risk, or who simply didn’t hear from us when they needed help or guidance.” He added: “We’ve let you down, and for this I’m truly sorry. It shouldn’t have happened. I want you to know that we’ll do everything we can to both put in place better arrangements to prevent this from occurring again, and to put the appropriate help and support in place for you now” (Proverbs 31:8-9).

In a statement, CCNI said it is engaging with PCI’s trustees “to ensure that appropriate steps are taken to protect beneficiaries and restore confidence.”

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