The Church of England has committed £150m to providing redress to survivors of Church-related abuse.
The comprehensive redress scheme was approved by its parliamentary body, the General Synod, after four years of debate and discussion, and will be operative once parliamentary approval and royal assent are given.
Reflecting on this landmark decision, one of the survivors, Phil Johnson, who has been a member of the Redress Project Board, said, “It is the culmination of years of hard work and when it opens, it will make a huge difference in the lives of people. For the Church, it is an opportunity to rectify some of the harm that’s been done to victims and survivors.”
The redress scheme will take into consideration, not only the abuse done by an individual perpetrator but also the impact on someone of church officers who failed to believe, or act on information provided to them about the abuse.
The Bishop of Winchester, Philip Mounstephen, Chair of the Redress Project Board explained, “Once operational, this independently run, survivor-focused scheme will be a crucial response to a clear need.
"It will make a real difference to people’s lives, offering not just financial redress but heartfelt apology, acknowledgment, and care, treating survivors with the fairness, compassion, and dignity they deserve.”
While this marks an important step in the Church of England’s relationship with survivors of abuse, there is still much to do.
Jonathan Gibbs, the Bishop of Rochester and former lead bishop for safeguarding, under whose leadership this scheme was initiated, had a stark warning for the Church: "The risk is that we could end up thinking we can so order the life of the Church that it [abuse] could not happen, and the reality is that is never the case.
"Sin happens, abuse happens, and we do need to have a healthy and realistic theology of human sinfulness which keeps us constantly on our guard.”
As a survivor of childhood trauma, Gibbs advised that individuals and institutions are naturally defensive and that independent reflection on the scheme will be needed in future “to reflect back to us how it is being experienced”.
A public website will open from 18 July enabling prospective applicants to register their interest and receive advance notification of the scheme's official opening date once it is known.
Susie Leafe is director of Anglican Futures, an organisation that provides pastoral and practical support to orthodox Anglicans.
