Warning over ‘reputational risk' damage from Church abuse scandals
Safeguarding failures on abuse could make it more difficult for the body managing the Church of England's investment fund to attract and keep staff, a new report has warned.
High-profile cases such as that of serial abuser John Smyth and the subsequent Makin Review which prompted the resignation of Justin Welby as Archbishop of Canterbury, are said to 'undermine public confidence' in how seriously safeguarding is taken.
The annual report from the Church Commissioners for England – which manages the Church's investment portfolio – described their reputational risk as currently being 'at an elevated level'.
The Makin review, the commissioners said, 'gave rise to serious questions about safeguarding practice in the Church of England'.
The commissioners' report, published on Monday, added: 'This case and other safeguarding failures undermine public confidence in the assertions made by the Church, including the Church Commissioners, about the importance of, and priority given to, safeguarding.
'The potential reputational impacts could be far-reaching; for example, they may in turn make it more difficult for us to attract and retain staff.'
The warning came as Church Commissioners announced they would be investing more than £1.6 billion towards the work of the Church from 2026 to 2028.
Bishop of London Dame Sarah Mullally said the 36% rise on the previous three-year period was 'the biggest injection of funding towards the work of the Church of England in our history, and we are very grateful for that'.
The money will go towards various areas including clergy pay, church repairs and net zero plans.
Some £30 million is being allocated towards the cost of national safeguarding work, including moves towards greater independence in how safeguarding is dealt with.
Some £150 million towards the costs of the new national redress scheme for survivors of Church abuse had already been announced.
In his foreword to the report, Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell acknowledged the 'challenging year' the Church had faced.
The commissioners noted there was also an element of reputational risk around the Church's work on dealing with its past links to slavery, saying such work had already 'attracted significant attention, comment and, in some cases, criticism'.
Their latest report warned: 'Further reaction (including negative comment) to this programme of work is expected when the intended new Fund for Healing, Repair and Justice is launched, making investments andissuing grants.'
The Church announced in January 2023 its work to address historic links to slavery, with a funding programme for investment, research and engagement to 'address past wrongs' but the initial £100 million investment fund was branded too small and slow.
An independent oversight group later said commissioners had 'embraced a target of £1 billion for a broader healing, repair and justice initiative with the fund at its centre'.
Elsewhere, some of the overall £1.6 billion investment announced on Monday is to go towards clergy pay rises of almost 11%.
The Church said the National Minimum Stipend (NMS) and the National Stipend Benchmark (NSB) will both rise by 10.7% from April, bring them to £33,350 and £34,950 respectively.
Dame Sarah said the latest investment will 'value and affirm our clergy who give their lives in the service of Christ through the Church'.
She said: 'I hope these carefully costed plans will provide a step-change in support to clergy right the way through from those following a call to ordination to those who have retired.
'It is vital also that we learn the lessons of our recent past and do everything we can to be a safer church for everyone.
'While no amount of money can ever erase the harm done by perpetrators of abuse, these spending plans will support the vital work of safeguarding in the Church and underpin the new National Redress scheme.'
To aid the Church's ambition to be 'net zero' by 2030, the commissioners said have earmarked up to £190 million up to 2031 for projects including decarbonising cathedrals, churches, church halls, schools andhouses.
The report admits it is 'unlikely that cathedrals will achieve net zero carbon by 2030 without some form of carbon offset, but we are working with the community to help reduce emissions as much as possible'.
The commissioners add that the latest investment will go towards preventing 'a 'cliff-edge' after the 2030 target date set by Synod, enabling work to limit carbon emissions to continue to receive support'.
Meanwhile, the report noted dozens of repair projects had been funded by commissioners to the value of £1.3 million last year, with a rise in instances of Church ceilings which appeared to have been damaged through lack of ventilation when the buildings were closed during the Covid-19 lockdowns.
It said there had been 'an increase in the numbers of failed lath and plaster ceilings due to weakened plaster' which it said was 'likely to have been exacerbated by condensation forming due to the lack of ventilation when churches were closed for prolonged periods during the pandemic'.
First Church Estates Commissioner, Alan Smith, said: 'This distribution of £1.6 billion represents the highest distribution in the Church's history – and we celebrate all those who have made it possible across the entire community of the Church, in particular the investments team, clergy and parishes.
'In stewarding these resources, we must be humble and vigilant, as the times ahead promise both great opportunities and challenges.'
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