The Church of England has given an update on its plans to take forward the work of its former Independent Safeguarding Board.
The plans include the appointment of Kevin Crompton as Interim Commissioner. These arrangements are to help ensure outstanding case reviews continue and provide an independent advocacy service for survivors.
Thirtyone:eight has been named, alongside the NSPCC, as one of the organisations that will undertake the reviews if selected by survivors with outstanding review requests.
The charity FearFree has also been engaged to provide advocacy and support for survivors during this process.
This update follows an earlier announcement this week concerning the appointment of Barrister Sarah Wilkinson who will head up an independent review into the first phase of the Independent Safeguarding Board.
Professor Alexis Jay, former chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) who has been appointed by the Archbishop's Council to develop proposals for a fully independent structure to provide scrutiny of safeguarding in the Church of England, has set up a programme to gather a range of views to better understand what needs to be improved or what is already working well.
Justin Humphreys, CEO of Thirtyone:eight says “We value the opportunity to contribute our independence and expertise to these interim arrangements. As we await the outcome of proposals being developed by Professor Jay and her team, we remain committed to doing what we can to ensure survivors do not have to continue to wait unnecessarily to have their concerns heard and reviews progressed.”
Read the full update from the Church of England here: https://www.churchofengland.org/safeguarding/safeguarding-news-releases/update-work-promised-former-isb-interim-commissioner