Yesterday, members of the General Synod of the Church of England voted almost unanimously (there were two abstentions) to repent of the failures of safeguarding in the Church of England detailed in the ‘Makin Report’ and to redouble work to implement best safeguarding practice.
Keith Makin published his report last November into the “prolific, brutal and horrific” abuse by John Smyth over many decades and two continents. The report outlined numerous and widespread failures, and described a shocking “active cover up” by church officers.
A moving debate was held by the Church of England’s parliamentary body on Monday.
Bishop Julie Conalty spoke first, simply sharing four ‘survivor statements’ with Synod, allowing their varied experiences and voices to be heard.
Many members articulated the shock and sadness they experienced when reading the report. Ed Shaw, a lay member from Bristol, spoke of the need for a change in culture, a theme that was echoed by many other speakers. Mr Shaw called on all those involved in the leadership of the Church of England to interact with the work of Dr Elly Hanson, a clinical psychologist who collaborated with Mr Makin to try and understand why it took so long for John Smyth’s abuse to be made known.
“The danger,” he said, “is that we’re really good at commissioning reports, really good at debating new structures, really good at calling for resignations but not so good at the self-examination that might lead to the culture change that also desperately needs to take place.”
Lay member, Professor Helen King, asked General Synod to “recognise that the institutional failure to enact adequate disciplinary process means that this and other cases cannot simply be labelled ‘historic’ as they have continuing effects on the lives of those victims and survivors”.
Her plea was heard, and Bishop Joanne Grenfell – the Church of England’s safeguarding lead bishop – accepted her amendment, acknowledging that although “events may not be recent, they are real and present in the lives of victims and survivors and their effects are profound and serious”.
There was a sense in the chamber that the Church of England has finally recognised the seriousness of the harm that has been done to those whose cries for help have been ignored.
Today, the General Synod will have to make decisions about the future of safeguarding in the Church of England. As Bishop Grenfell told Synod, “We are ministering as a broken church. I am reminding you of that work in the hope that it will become part of the huge process of culture change in which we must all play our part.”
