Surviving Church Conflict

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ES: Are you saying that you can’t have confidence in the independence of the Board unless she withdraws or in some way goes? That servile relationship with the Archbishops’ Council is highlighted by the fact that Meg Munn has been imposed on the ISB as acting chair, in clear breach of the ISB’s terms of reference, which state that the Archbishops’ Council “ratifies” board appointments and that each member is appointed following a process that includes “public advertisement of vacancies” and “the use of expert recruiters to ensure a wide field”. Added to this is the obvious conflict of interest in appointing a person who is also chairs the National Safeguarding Panel [NSP]. clergy and lay members of church bodies who need to see, hear and respond well to those who have experienced trauma and abuse in the church

Meg Munn’s appointment as acting chairman of the ISB is irregular for a number of reasons, as I explained in my letter published in the Church Times on 28 April 2023: The legislation should, I think entail the establishment of a regulator. The powers of the regulator could be analogous with those of the Information Commissioner. The main problem would then be one of finance and, as I see it, the regulator could be funded partly via a government grant and partly by a levy on institutions with safeguarding obligations (plus fines). The circumstances in which Joanne Grenfell became a member of the House of Bishops are, I suspect, not well-known, and are not without controversy. These, then, are the facts concerning Bishop Joanne’s election to the HoB: in the context of a long-running dispute with the former Dean [Martyn Percy]” there had been “mismanagement and/or misconduct in the management and administration of the charity. This is because the trustees have not (a) managed the charity’s resources responsibly;(b) ensured that the charity is accountable.” I have asked for a major investigation like the police are doing and every Diocese and Parish Safeguarding Advisors in the Church of England are re-vetted, and, incompetent Diocese and Parish safeguarding advisors are removed from being able to practice.This isn’t usually a particularly attractive commercial proposition, and is why this “new” venture hasn’t already taken off. People want to be paid. And they don’t want to risk losing everything if they make a tactical error or even fill in the dreaded form incorrectly. An independent review of the governance of Christ Church, chaired by Dominic Grieve KC, is underway. Implementing subsequent changes to the governance and statutes of Christ Church will require the approval of the University, the Church of England, the Privy Council and Parliament. This is likely to be a lengthy process. Once it is complete Professor Foot intends to stand down to allow new leadership to take Christ Church forward under new statutes.” Looking at the October 2021 voting figures, if none of the five stood down, it seemed likely (though not certain, as the STV counting is complex) that Jonathan Baker would have stepped up to fill the vacancy. However, that did not happen. I have asked Bishop Joanne to remove a couple of Diocese Safeguarding Advisors from being able to work in the Church of England, and, to refer them to the Disclosure and Barring Service, she refused to speak to me on the telephone but I had to speak to Debi Tony, and, I have asked them to resolve some issues, and they have covered this up. Revd Hayns may be one of those subject to investigation by a full and proper Christ Church Review: it is not nice, especially when one emerges the other end with the allegations unsustained, but nevertheless harmed.

With Martyn Percy’s case he obtained crowd funding because supporters could grasp his cause and get behind it. The next big case will require similar support if not a great deal more, to have any chance of success. That said, I believe it to be possible. I for one pray that Jasvinder & Steve will not be provoked into resigning, tempting though that must be to themSo now we know that the Audit Committee can look into these matters and it needs to do so as a matter of urgency.

Every Diocese Safeguarding Advisor should also report to a member of the National Safeguarding Team as well as a Diocese Bishop. The regulator has determined that these failures and omissions amount to misconduct and/or mismanagement in the charity’s administration.

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Junubin artists have an anti-conflict collective they named “Anataban”, Juba Arabic for “we are tired”. Many of us increasingly pushed away from our church feel the same way. The Dean must be accountable on ecclesiastical matters to the Chapter and not to the governing body of Christ Church; I have also asked that in the light of the Soul Survivor Festival scandal, that every Church of England festival in the United Kingdom, every Christian retreat, church away day, have a major safeguarding review to ensure that no other scandals come out of the Church of England. For these reasons we have engaged in creative projects designed and delivered by those with lived experience of abuse, those who minister to them, and others in our communities who support this vital work.”

Isn’t your first point answered by the active involvement of the Charity Commission? The issue of an official warning to Christ Church reminding all trustees of their duties and potential personal liability, plus the Commission’s scrutiny of the latest accounts which are to be filed shortly, together with Dominic Grieve’s review, should surely militate against anything similar happening again. I hope Martyn gets somewhere but from my experience unless there is a provable mishandling of charity funds or beneficiaries that are in immediate danger the CC is too stretched to properly respond. If you read the terms of the announcement – and we must now be clear that the news management is largely in the hands of the CofE Communications Department – it was all very respectful and amicable; evidently the Chair was leaving partly to spend more time with her family. If you believe this is the top and tail of the story, I have a lovely bridge in New York to sell you – ‘real cheap.” Immediately after meeting with the Jay Review, I briefly attended the Clergy Conduct Measure Revision committee and gave them a heads-up on this model of Safeguarding. Having read the new draft new Measure it is clear to me that it has – not unreasonably – been drawn in the context of a ‘business as usual’ model. I have my own definite views about this appointment, which I had better keep to myself. In happier times it might have been a suitable one. Personally, I think it would have been better to keep the deanery vacant until Mr Grieve had reported. I should add that Mr Grieve is a sincere Anglican (and was close to Vivian Green).I have been busy at Synod and not following these comments. I have of course, been pressing the case for the survivor interest on multiple fronts including reporting a variety of views upon the proposed Redress Scheme. I abstained, so that nobody felt I was not taking their concerns seriously. Isn’t the problem that the C of E feels it can ‘mark its own homework’ and doesn’t really like the idea of any truly independent scrutiny? I see the ISB as the secondary issue here, but what has so far been revealed about it rather supports the point. When the ISB Chair and Lead Bishop were insisting the ISB was “fully independent” they may well have been speaking in good faith, but did nobody know this was false or erroneous?” I once had a rather naughty antique dealer friend (think Lovejoy), who used to defend his wheeler-dealing trading by saying: “ Truth is a precious commodity – we must use it sparingly”. When I read and listen to many of the Replies to our Questions at Synod, I often wonder why those answering us have so much to say yet are so evasive and sparing with the truth. At a time when trust and confidence in the leadership has never been lower, truth and delivery on promises looks so problematic.