Catholic Church trust investigated over ‘failings’ in child protection

Charity Commission launches probe into Birmingham Diocesan Trust after concerns

THE Charity Commission has launched an investigation into whether the Catholic Church in the West Midlands is doing enough to protect children from abuse.

It is looking into the Birmingham Diocesan Trust, a church charity which provides religious services and education across Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Oxfordshire, Sandwell, Solihull, Staffordshire, Walsall, Warwickshire and Wolverhampton.

The investigation comes after the former Archbishop of Birmingham, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, faced questions from a separate inquiry into how the church responded to horrific incidents of historic child abuse.

According to the Charity Commission, the trust carried out reviews of its safeguarding policies, procedures and practices. But these “highlighted some serious failings and concerns” over how the charity was ensuring children and other vulnerable people were kept safe.

Harvey Grenville, head of investigations and enforcement at the Charity Commission, said: “We have opened a statutory inquiry into the charity to ensure it addresses these specific concerns as a matter of urgency.”

Cardnal Nichols gave evidence in December 2018 to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), which was set up by the Government in 2014 following revelations about Jimmy Savile, and claims that sex abuse by politicians had been covered up.

The IICSA inquiry investigated the church’s response to cases including that of paedophile priest James Robinson, who was jailed in 2010 for 21 years for sexually abusing boys in the West Midlands between 1959 and 1983.

It also looked at the way the church responded to allegations against Father John Tolkien, who was questioned by police in 2002 over an abuse allegation, but was never charged.

Fr Tolkien was accused by Birmingham man Christopher Carrie of having twice sexually abused him in November 1956, when he was aged 11.

Cardinal Nichols was Archbishop of Birmingham from 2000 to 2009. He is now Archbishop of Westminster, making him the most senior representative of the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

He told the IICSA inquiry in December: “The presence in the church of the terrible evil, of the, at times, virtual destruction of a person’s life through the exploitation of sexual abuse of children, it is something, as I say, which will mark my priesthood always, and it is something that the more I hear, the more I reflect on it, is a cause of great sorrow and shame for me and, indeed, I know for the Catholic Church.”

The Archdiocese of Birmingham said in a statement : “The Charity Commission has launched a statutory inquiry into safeguarding at the Archdiocese of Birmingham. This follows the Archdiocese’s recent participation as a case study in the national IICSA inquiry (Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse), for which we now

await the report and recommendations. The Archdiocese is fully committed to co-operating with the Charity Commission as the inquiry unfolds, and to the resolution of any and all issues associated with safeguarding.

“Following IICSA the Archdiocese took immediate action to improve its approach to safeguarding, and this work is continuing with additional resources in place to support this.”

The Charity Commission is looking into:

The trust’s risk management procedures, and handling of incidents reported since 2016;

Its responsibility to provide a safe environment for its beneficiaries, staff and other charity workers;

Vetting and following of Disclosure and Barring Service procedures in relation to its employees, volunteers and other charity workers;

DBS checks allow employers or organisations to check whether a potential employee or volunteer should be prevented from working with children;

Its response to and actions in relation to an independent review of its procedures in 2018;

Whether sufficient steps are being taken to ensure public trust and confidence in the charity.

The Charity Commission said: “The public rightly expect charities to ensure safeguarding is an absolute priority, so when anyone comes into contact with people representing a charity, they are protected and the risks managed.

“The Birmingham Diocesan Trust is a large charity, providing services accessed weekly by some 60,000 people and has a wide scope; it works across many different regions and has a wide range of beneficiaries.

“The beneficiaries quite rightly expect to be confident and assured that the charity’s safeguarding governance is fit for purpose, and any areas identified for improvement are swiftly and properly addressed.”

It is something that the more I hear.. is a cause of great sorrow and shame for me and the Catholic Church

Cardinal Nichols