St Lawrence Church, in Barnwood, Gloucester is a local parish church serving its community. On Sunday 16 November 2025, around 80 people attended their Safeguarding Sunday service, giving space for the whole congregation to reflect on what safeguarding means in everyday church life and the part each person plays.
After previously dedicating short slots to Safeguarding Sunday, last year, they decided to give the theme more time. They adapted the resources to suit their community and found simple ways to help safeguarding feel relevant, shared, and meaningful.
Their experience shows that Safeguarding Sunday doesn’t need to be complicated or resource‑heavy to be effective and is an encouragement to other churches who are still undecided on whether to take part.
Their safeguarding journey
“St Lawrence Church has taken part in Safeguarding Sunday for the past four years, having first heard about it from Thirtyone:eight. In earlier years, we marked the day with a short slot within a service. But, in 2025, the church chose to give Safeguarding Sunday more space in their Communion service, with the whole service shaped around the theme, including the sermon by Rev. Robert Crofton.”
Giving a whole service to safeguarding felt a natural extension of the work the church had been doing throughout the year. The PCC had undertaken training linked to the National Safeguarding Standards, and they had used the Thirtyone:eight Culture Cube to examine the safety of their culture. The discussions that followed helped leaders think carefully about how safeguarding is lived out, not just written down, and helped them decide how to do Safeguarding Sunday.
Adopting the theme
The 2025 Safeguarding Sunday theme was “Action Speaks Louder”, which the church felt gave them a clear and accessible starting point.
“We liked being part of a national campaign because it reinforced that safeguarding is not something that churches do alone. Being part of a shared, UK‑wide campaign helped to underline the message that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.”
Adapting resources
St Lawrence really wanted their congregation to “recognise the safeguarding work already happening and think about how our own actions contribute to a safer, more caring church environment.”
To help with this, they felt it was important to have resources that were simple to use and helped keep people focused. Knowing their people best, they took the Thirtyone:eight resources and adapted them for their context. They even created some resources of their own.
One activity they did during the service inspired people to think about their own role in safeguarding,
“Before worship began, we placed a blank card and a pen on each seat. After the sermon and a short safeguarding slot, the congregation was invited to reflect:
- What is going well at St Lawrence when it comes to safeguarding?
- How do I contribute to creating a safe and caring church community
People were invited to place their cards into a post box at the end of the service. Some chose to take them home to reflect further and returned them later.
Although there were a few light‑hearted comments at first, people engaged thoughtfully with the activity. The responses showed how differently safeguarding is understood and experienced — and how personally people connect with it.”
Some of the reflections included:
“Biggest takeaway… safeguarding helps you respond to issues inside and outside the church family.”
“I realise I need to be more observant and to really listen to people.”
“Safeguarding is not a process; it’s a promise to be the voice for those who cannot speak, the strength for those who are vulnerable, and the shield for those in need.”
Key themes from the cards were then summarised in the Vicar’s weekly newsletter and used to support the promotion of safeguarding training within the church. The cards themselves will also form part of a display to promote Safeguarding Sunday 2026, to help keep the conversation visible and ongoing.
What difference did it make?
St Lawrence Church felt that Safeguarding Sunday helped the whole congregation to feel more involved and more connected to safeguarding. The service encouraged further conversations about safeguarding culture and helped people better understand why safeguarding matters, how it links to everyday church life and why regular training is important.
Some people even asked to refresh their safeguarding training, while others requested to complete additional modules, showing a growing sense of shared responsibility.
A message for other churches
Thirtyone:eight asked St Lawrence Church what they would say to churches unsure if Safeguarding Sunday is “for them”, they offered a simple encouragement.
“Give Safeguarding Sunday a go. The annual theme alone provides a helpful way into talking about safeguarding and why it matters in our churches and communities.
Taking part doesn’t require a perfect service or a set way of doing things. It gives us a shared focus, but a theme and resources you can make your own.
Even small steps open up conversation, and create space for reflection which can make a real difference.”
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St Lawrence’s example shows that Safeguarding Sunday can be shaped to fit your church, your people, and your context, whatever your size or background, and can help safeguarding feel more shared, more human, and more rooted in everyday faith.
Find out more at Safeguarding Sunday.