Safeguarding Audit

Ruth Attfield, Head of Safeguarding in the Diocese, informs us about the forthcoming audit of the Diocese being undertaken by the Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency (CSSA)

“Did you not realise that you were God’s temple and that the Spirit of God was living in you? If anybody should destroy the temple of God, God will destroy him, because the temple of God is sacred and you are that temple” (1 Cor 3: 16-17). Safeguarding is an absolute priority to the life and mission of our Diocese of Portsmouth; that we create ‘safe spaces’ for everyone, the young and the old, the strong and the vulnerable. The creation of a strong and healthy culture of safeguarding is a responsibility that rests upon us all.

The Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency (CSSA) is a professional standards body with regulatory powers that exists to regulate Catholic Church bodies, offer assurance to the public and drive improvements in safeguarding standards in the Church. The CSSA endeavour to help everyone adhere to the policies and standards that have been agreed. Part of the CSSA’s role as a regulator is to undertake audits across Dioceses in England and Wales, assessing safeguarding practice against the eight national safeguarding standards. We have been notified that our audit will be conducted on the week beginning Monday 18th March 2024 with the practical elements being concluded on Friday 23rd March. Commenting on the imminent audit, Bishop Philip said “We are pleased to welcome to the Diocese members of the Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency (CSSA) who will be here to undertake an audit.  We look forward to this because audits invariably show up not only the things we do well, but also the areas that need improvement and development.  I invite you therefore to engage sincerely and wholeheartedly with the CSSA when they visit, so that they can capture accurately the efforts being made across the Diocese, to ensure our parish and church communities are safe places for those who use them.”
Image: CBCEW