“The day brought greater awareness and understanding by the people in the pews. We framed it in a positive light grounded in theology - rather than saying 'you need to do this because it’s the law.” – 2024 Participant
Since 2019 churches in the UK have taken part in Safeguarding Sunday, an annual safeguarding campaign spearheaded Thirtyone:eight. The campaign helps churches to raise awareness of safeguarding and to talk to their communities about what they are doing to create safer environments. The campaign encourages churches to hold at least one, or part of, a special service each year dedicated to safeguarding awareness.
In 2024 nearly 6000 churches from various traditions and denominations took part in Safeguarding Sunday and this year we hope to see even more churches involved.
Despite the campaign's popularity, Safeguarding Leads tell us that it still remains a challenge to persuade their churches to participate. The most common reasons being:
- No space in the church calendar
- Concerns about alienating members
- Concerns it’s not an appropriate subject for a Sunday preach
- Unsure how to approach the subject
This blog seeks to address key concerns your leaders might have, helping you encourage them to participate. A template email you can use is provided at the end.
But first - the benefits!
Over the last six years churches repeatedly us that the positive benefits of Safeguarding Sunday are significant and church-wide. They experience:
- GREATER positive awareness and understanding of safeguarding among church members.
- An INCREASE in the number of people feeling able to talk about what’s happened to them for the first time.
- MORE people coming forward to volunteer and to help with running activities.
- An INCREASED number of people completing safeguarding training and criminal record checks.
- And the number of Safeguarding Leads feeling supported in their role by the church is BIGGER
These benefits alone should encourage your leaders, and help them understand the positive impact of taking part in the campaign. But if you need to go a step further, here’s some things to consider:
1. No space in the church calendar
Some churches plan their year’s activities well in advance, and it’s not always possible to change those plans. We announce the date of Safeguarding Sunday a year in advance to help with this, but we understand some people don’t hear about the campaign until much closer to the date.
The good news is that it’s still possible to acknowledge the day, even if your schedule is full. You can:
a) Hold a Safeguarding Sunday service on a different day. We plan Safeguarding Sunday to coincide with Adult Safeguarding Week, but you can do it whenever suits you.
b) You don’t have to do a whole service. Instead, you could do just one thing, for example, pray for your safeguarding team, sing a hymn about God’s care for the vulnerable, or read a bible verse. We have a wealth of resources on the website, take your pick!
2. Concerns about alienating members
“It raised discussion among the congregation. We received feedback that it was very helpful and important to have been open and to have talked about the church's role in safeguarding.” - 2024 participant
It’s understandable to have concerns about how church members would receive a morning dedicated to safeguarding. People come to church to worship and be built up, and safeguarding can be perceived as a heavy and unpleasant subject. While there’s no doubt the subject can raise strong emotions that range from people who think ‘bad things won’t happen here’, to memories of past hurts for others, led well, it can be a helpful experience.
At its core Safeguarding Sunday is a positive campaign. It aims to help churches to:
- Highlight the actions and measures the church is taking to keep people safe.
- Make people aware of who they can raise concerns with or speak to and get help.
- Recognise and acknowledge the efforts of those involved in safeguarding.
By participating in Safeguarding Sunday, churches can showcase the good work being done and restore and maintain trust and confidence within their communities.
Safeguarding IS everyone’s responsibility, but if your church members don’t know that, they won’t be supporting the good work you’re already doing, and could even be undermining it. We have a wealth of free resources to help you plan a whole or part of a service that can feel positive while also raising awareness of the importance of creating safer places.
"I’ve had several people comment to me after Safeguarding Sunday saying it had been helpful to remind them of all our responsibilities, mentioning things they had learnt that had not occurred to them before, and two people came to me to talk about abuse they had experienced as children!" – Campaign participant
3. Concerns it’s not an appropriate subject for a Sunday preach
“It raised awareness and engagement in our congregation and encouraged someone who had not been engaging with the need for a DBS check to make an appointment to be checked.” – 2024 participant
"Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." — Matthew 25:40 (NIV)
When people think of safeguarding they rightly think about the prevention of abuse, but that is not all that safeguarding is. Simply put, safeguarding is protecting the vulnerable, and while Jesus didn’t use those exact words, it is something that he spoke about many times, which helps us when it comes to planning a sermon or preach.
Below are some suggested bible verses that may inspire your talk. We also include preach and all-age services notes in our free online resource pack.
Children:
"If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea." — Matthew 18:6 (NIV)
The oppressed:
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free." — Luke 4:18 (NIV)
The weak and sick:
"When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick." — Matthew 14:14 (NIV)
Justice and Mercy:
"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness." — Matthew 23:23 (NIV)
4. Unsure how to approach the subject
“Only a couple of weeks ago, a returning visitor to the Chaplaincy thanked us because last years service empowered them to make a disclosure, when they returned home, and now they have started the a journey of healing which, without the service they might not have started. Also, in general terms it helps to make sure everyone understands we all have a role and responsibility to make our church a safe place for all.” – 2024 participant
Media reports of church abuse have made leaders wary of approaching the subject. Leaders may fear scrutiny or have concerns about triggering victim-survivors. Some say they don’t feel equipped to speak with authority on the subject. All of this is understandable, but avoiding the subject completely risks the safety of your church.
We want to help you speak confidently about safeguarding – to raise awareness of it’s importance and to celebrate the good work you are doing. To help you navigate the subject, and lead your church sensitively and positively, we have lots of free resources available to use. There are ideas for supporting victim-survivors, preach notes, all-age service suggestions, prayers and a whole lot more.
If your leader is undecided or has perhaps already said no, hopefully, the information in this blog will equip you to have another conversation about it. To help open up that opportunity you could send an email. To help you we have included a template for you to use.
Subject: A Thought About Safeguarding Sunday
Hi [Leader's Name],
I wanted to reach out to share some thoughts about Safeguarding Sunday and see what you think about the idea of us taking part this year.
I know you may have some reservations about it, and I completely understand that. I feel that it could be a really meaningful opportunity for our church to show that we take the safety of everyone in our community seriously by demonstrating all the positive work we are doing.
Churches that have taken part say an unexpected benefit has been that more people come forward to volunteer and help with running activities and complete their training and criminal record checks as a result, which would be a great outcome for us.
It wouldn’t need to be a whole service — even something simple like a short prayer or a brief reflection would be a great way to acknowledge the importance of safeguarding. I think if people could see what we are doing, and understand the part they play, it would help reinforce our desire for a culture where everyone feels valued and protected.
Other churches have found it really helpful, and being part of a nationwide campaign is a great way to show our community that we reflect the heart of Jesus in how we care for each other. I’d be more than happy to help with organising it or working with others to make it simple and meaningful. Thirtyone:eight have produced a lot of free resources to help make it easier.
Would you be open to talking about it a bit more? I really think it could be a positive and encouraging step for our church.
Thanks so much for considering this — I really appreciate it.
Warmly,
[Your Name]
This year Safeguarding Sunday is on Sunday 16th November 2025. Registration will be available from the summer, sign up now to find out more.
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Safeguarding Sunday: Let's talk about it