The Church of England’s Safeguarding Debacle: Failure upon Failure
The safeguarding failures of the Church of England continue to deepen, exposing not only past abuses but also ongoing incompetence in responding to survivors. Recent months have brought a fresh wave of scandals—from the conviction of abusive clergy and the resignation of the Archbishop of Canterbury, to the mishandling of survivors’ personal details in the redress process. Together these incidents form a damning portrait of an institution unable—or unwilling—to reform itself.
Historic Abuses Re-exposed
The conviction in August 2025 of Chris Brain, former leader of the notorious Nine O’Clock Service in Sheffield, renewed focus on the Church’s complicity in his cult-like regime. Brain, hastily ordained despite warnings, was found guilty of seventeen counts of indecent assault against nine women. Survivors recounted how they were silenced by Church officials, discouraged from contacting police or media, lest the institution’s image be tarnished¹.
The scandal is not confined to the past. The 2024 Makin Review revealed that barrister John Smyth, a prominent figure in Church-linked youth camps, abused over a hundred boys and young men for decades while bishops and leaders failed to act². The report described a pattern of cover-up that implicated the highest levels of Church authority. In its wake, Archbishop Justin Welby resigned in January 2025, acknowledging his inadequate handling of the crisis³.
Resistance to Independent Safeguarding
Despite these revelations, the Church has resisted calls for radical reform. In February 2025 the General Synod rejected proposals for fully independent safeguarding, voting instead for a limited arrangement where only national staff would be overseen externally, while local safeguarding officers remained under diocesan control⁴. Critics, including Bishop Sarah Mullally of London, warned that such half-measures would never rebuild trust. Survivors’ groups have been even more forthright, calling the decision a betrayal.
The Redress Scheme Breach
Most recently, on 27 August 2025, the crisis took a grotesque new turn. Nearly two hundred survivors enrolled in the Church’s redress scheme had their personal email addresses exposed in a mass mailing error by Kennedys Law, the firm administering the programme⁵. Survivors described the breach as retraumatising, particularly for those whose abuse histories were still undisclosed to family or employers.
The advocacy group House of Survivors denounced the incident as emblematic of the very failures the redress scheme was meant to rectify. Lawyer David Greenwood, representing multiple claimants, said bluntly: *“I have a right to lifelong anonymity under the law. This protection has now been severely compromised through no choice of my own.”*⁶
Kennedys Law apologised, attributing the breach to “human error,” and reported it to regulators. But the explanations failed to quell outrage. Survivor advocate Andrew Graystone described the event as “deeply damaging and traumatising”⁷. One survivor’s blog captured the mood: *“Why did I ever trust this scheme? This leak only adds to our suffering, our mental health struggles, and our mistrust.”*⁸
A Culture of Clerical Careerism
Underlying these failures is what one commentator called the “careerism” of bishops, more concerned with protecting their own positions than with safeguarding the flock⁹. From the tolerance of cult-like abuses to the refusal of full independence in safeguarding, the pattern is unmistakable: image and authority consistently outweigh justice and truth.
Evaluation: A Church in Moral Bankruptcy
The trajectory of these scandals demonstrates that the Church of England has not learned from its history. The exposure of survivors’ details is not a minor bureaucratic slip but the latest sign that the institution cannot be trusted with the vulnerable. Partial reforms, belated apologies, and vague promises will not suffice.
If safeguarding is to mean anything, it must be fully independent, transparent, and accountable. More than that, however, the Church must undergo a deeper conversion. Until bishops abandon careerism and embrace humility, repentance, and the courage to tell the truth about their failures, the credibility of Anglican safeguarding will remain in ruins.
- Reuters, Leader of ‘cult-like’ UK Christian group guilty of sexually abusing women (21 Aug 2025).
- Makin Review, The Independent Review into the Abuse of John Smyth QC (Nov 2024).
- People, Archbishop of Canterbury resigns over handling of child sex abuse scandal (Jan 2025).
- The Guardian, General Synod votes against fully independent safeguarding (11 Feb 2025).
- Reuters, Personal details of Church of England abuse victims leaked, say survivors (27 Aug 2025).
- Ibid.
- Premier Christian News, Law firm sorry for human error that led to CofE abuse survivors’ data breach (28 Aug 2025).
- Retired Rector Blog, Church’s Major Data Breach (26 Aug 2025).
- The Guardian, C of E bishops accused of ‘careerism’ over failure to condemn abuse cover-up (1 Dec 2024).
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