Standard 3

Those that report having suffered harm receive a compassionate, caring and timely response, and are provided with access to appropriate support, advice, and pastoral care.

The criteria which indicate that this standard is being met include:

EC1: The Church body will:

• Respond to any disclosure of abuse with compassion and care, seeking to provide signposting as appropriate to support and advice, and offer pastoral care tailored to the needs of the individual.
• Establish access to personnel with training relevant to specific needs, to deliver professional mental health and other appropriate support when required.
• Collaborate with other organisations, both voluntary and statutory, who specialise in this area of work.
• Look to learn from the experience of those that are provided with a service, to confirm that it is meeting their needs.
• Reflect on any disclosures that it receives with a view to drawing learning from them to inform the CSSA and future safeguarding practice across the One Church.

EC2: The Leadership of the Church body will:

• Actively reflect upon their response to those who report that they have been harmed, to enhance their commitment to it being compassionate and caring, and improving their practice.
• Engage with those that report harm to try to learn from their experiences.
• Support development in their practice that is aimed at enhancing a compassionate and caring response.

The following represents evidence that would indicate compliance with this standard:

• Seeking training for all members who may receive a disclosure of abuse to help them respond in a compassionate and caring way.
• Signposting to other organisations that have appropriately trained personnel to respond to those that report that have been harmed.
• Commissioning reviews of their practice from the CSSA (Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency).
• Creating conversations with those that report that they have been harmed, either in groups or individually.
• Records that show that the experience of those that report that they have been harmed has been actively discussed and reflected upon within leadership and management meetings in the Church body.

Links with other standards:
This standard links with standards I, 2, 7, and 8