“It answered our questions, and it helped us understand better.”

This was just one of the comments made recently by a mass-goer at St Mary’s Cathedral in Newcastle, in response to last month’s safeguarding review. The intense media interest in our work in the Diocese has calmed. But as the new month starts, it is important we hold on to those words as we all move forward. Answering questions is what we’re here for.

Our team of specialist safeguarding auditors have been working with other church bodies, too – both religious life groups and dioceses. Our responsibility is to all church bodies across England and Wales. We will show equal rigour, equal transparency, every time. We will soon publish summaries of all safeguarding audits as we complete them. Some may attract attention, others won’t. What matters is that we help drive safeguarding standards and share what we find. Only that way will the public get the assurance they need about how people are kept safe.

We will, of course, continue to support, but also keep check on, safeguarding improvements in Hexham and Newcastle. It is our job to moniter their progress and report on that, with transparency. We expect to see action since our report, and we are confident in the commitment already shown by the Bishop Stephen Wright. I thank him for all he has done so far.

We will continue to hold to account Church leaders across England and Wales. Safeguarding professionals and others must be empowered to speak up about concerns and know that they will be heard. The Church has a zero-tolerance approach to abuse, but this only means something if it is upheld – proactively, courageously, daily.

Our report was never about us. It was about an independent voice, sharing the evidence it found, impartially. We hope that churchgoers in religious life groups and dioceses across England and Wales will start to feel greater assurance of a safe Catholic Church for all.

I have heard sadness and the suffering from people in the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle, and I don’t doubt for a minute how deep that hurt must be. I have also spoken with survivors of church-related abuse, and for many, our report was understandably painful reading. But I also see evidence of hope. As another local person put it:

“People are now unafraid, and active, in saying ‘this shouldn’t go on’ – it feels like a cleansing, and I hope it will stay like this.”

This seems like a great message for the future of safeguarding in the Catholic Church. We look forward to our role in that journey.

Nazir Afzal, OBE, Chair, CSSA