This annual report draws together two years of audit evidence, and its message is clear: the Church is on a positive trajectory. Yet once again we publish at a time of significant uncertainty about the future structures of the Church of England. At the time of our 2024 report, the intention was to implement the recommendations of Alexis Jay’s ‘Future of Church Safeguarding’ review. That has since been overtaken by the Safeguarding Structures Programme, whose outcome and direction remain, at the time of writing, unclear. This must be addressed urgently. The Church needs to set out the evidence that underpins its chosen path, and a firm timeline for moving beyond the current ambiguity. Real progress has been made; the last thing the wider Church now needs is drift. Whatever comes next must command the confidence of all stakeholders, and that confidence will be built on evidence, clarity and a meaningful timeline.

I hope the evidence-based findings of this report and its companion documents on choristers and on victims and survivors, highlighting both positive developments and critical obstacles, will inform the Church’s next steps. In my view, the Church must now demonstrate that it is learning: from the evidence of these audits, from its engagement with the Charity Commission, from listening to its frontline safeguarding teams and, above all, from the voices and experiences of victims and survivors.

Jim Gamble QPM
Lead Auditor
INEQE Safeguarding Group