safeguarding – The Church of England in Parliament

Church Commissioners Questions: Persecuted Christians, Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, Christians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, End-of-life Ministry, Safeguarding

On 15th January 2026, the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Marsha De Cordova MP, gave the following answers to questions from MPs in the House of Commons:

Persecuted Christians Abroad

Matt Turmaine MP (Lab, Watford) asked: 1. What steps the Church of England is taking to help support persecuted Christians in other countries. (907298)

Andrew Rosindell MP (Con, Romford) asked: 3. What steps the Church of England is taking to help tackle the persecution of Christians in other countries.

Bishop of Derby asks about preventing exploitation of children

The Bishop of Derby received the following written answer on 5th January 2025:

The Lord Bishop of Derby asked His Majesty’s Government whether they plan to issue statutory guidance to all statutory safeguarding partners, including police, local authorities and integrated care boards, for the criminal exploitation of children measures in the Crime and Policing Bill should the Bill receive Royal Assent; and if not, why not, and what steps they will take to clarify roles and responsibilities and embed best practice in safeguarding children from exploitation in that absence of that statutory guidance.

Crime and Policing Bill: Bishop of Manchester raises point on safeguarding in private tutoring

The Bishop of Manchester raised a point on the inclusion of private music tuition under safeguarding regulations during a debate on the Crime and Policing Bill on 15th December 2025:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, one area that is of great concern to me is private music tuition. I have had some pretty horrendous safeguarding cases to deal with in churches, where a church musician who has committed some serious offences has gone on to privately tutor underage pupils. That particular form of tuition—which is very often done privately, arranged by parents who see an advertisement on the internet or in a newspaper—needs to be included.

Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill: Bishop of Gloucester supports amendments on prisons and prisoners

The Bishop of Gloucester spoke in support of amendments to the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill focusing on healthcare for those in prison and safeguarding of prisoners under the bill on 12th December 2025:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, I will speak to these amendments because I want to make a new point. A very vulnerable population that we must continue to remember is the prison population. Although we will deal with the prison population more fully in the group coming up, we must remember that this Bill currently does not exclude prisoners from being eligible. That means we must consider how each issue is likely to play out in a prison setting.

As we have heard extensively, these amendments deal with two main issues: first, access to primary care; and, secondly, how well that primary care physician knows the details of your medical history. The first is very closely related to inequalities and making sure that those who have worse access to care are not more likely to choose assisted dying. The prison population are therefore a key group that must be considered, since their health and access to healthcare are worse than that of the general population. That is evidenced by the recently published report by the Chief Medical Officer.

Crime and Policing Bill: Bishop of Manchester supports amendments on combatting child trafficking and improving safeguarding regulations

On 27th November 2025, the Bishop of Manchester spoke in support of an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill which would expand the definition of exploitation under the Modern Slavery Act 2015 to include children who have been recruited into residential care institutions that engage in orphanage trafficking:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, I too support this amendment in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Randall of Uxbridge. It is my privilege, as I travel around the world visiting Anglican provinces, often to visit orphanages and see some of the work they do. As noble Lords have already said, many of these children still have a living parent somewhere, but that parent, for whatever reason, no longer feels able or wishes to look after them, particularly if the mother has died in childbirth.

Bishop of Leicester asks about support for faith communities addressing safeguarding concerns

The Bishop of Leicester asked a question on government support for faith communities in addressing safeguarding concerns on 22nd October 2025, during a discussion on a Commons Urgent Question on group-based child sexual exploitation and abuse:

The Lord Bishop of Leicester: My Lords, the Church of England has in recent years been forced to face up to our own, significant failures in the areas of safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults. We were far too slow to realise the devastating impact of safeguarding when it goes wrong, and we are even now struggling to put in place appropriate ways of ensuring accountability and of being led by survivors. Can the Minister therefore tell me what the Government are doing to support all faith communities in addressing safeguarding, to go beyond simply the requirements of the Charity Commission and to show that no group is above the law when it comes to safeguarding?

Bishop of Oxford asks about ethical use of medical data

The Bishop of Oxford asked a question on the ethical questions around use of medical data and outsourcing of this data to private companies on 9th July 2025, following a government statement on the NHS 10-Year Plan:

The Lord Bishop of Oxford: My Lords, I welcome the Minister to her place and, like others, send good wishes to the noble Baroness, Lady Merron.

I welcome very much, as others have done, the three aspirations in Fit for the Future. I think that they are significant and that they are the right ones. I think they are bold and visionary. However, while I welcome the move from analogue to digital, for me, the document raises significant questions. We are looking to build a National Health Service which cares for whole people, not machines. We need, therefore, to be concerned for physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health, at every stage of life, across the NHS. That demands continuous investment in people, including, of course, chaplains.

Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill: Bishop of Lincoln moves safeguarding amendments on behalf of the Bishop of Manchester

The Bishop of Lincoln moved two amendments in place of the Bishop of Manchester on lifelong safeguarding for children in care during a debate on the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill on 19th June 2025:

The Lord Bishop of Lincoln:

146B: Clause 21, page 39, line 21, at end insert—

(e) to have due regard to the need to remove or minimise the disadvantages suffered by looked-after children and relevant young persons.”Member’s explanatory statement

The amendment seeks to expand and strengthen Clause 21 by replacing the light-touch duty to be “alert to” their needs with a stronger requirement for public bodies to have “due regard” to eliminating disadvantage and to take reasonable steps to mitigate any harmful effects of their policies. The amendment intends to create a legally enforceable, lifelong safeguard for anyone who has ever been in care.

My Lords, I move the amendments in the name of the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Manchester. In relation to Amendment 146B, 120 councils around the country have already committed themselves voluntarily to embrace the “due regard” implementation, but this amendment intends to create a legally enforceable, legislative and lifelong safeguard across government for anyone who has ever been in care.

Church Commissioners Questions: Same-sex couples – Church Blessing Services, Occupied Palestinian Territories – Christians, Interfaith Cohesion, Safeguarding, Leaseholds, Church Assets – Historical Link to Slavery

On 22nd May 2025, the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Marsha De Cordova MP, gave the following answers to questions from MPs in the House of Commons:

Same-sex couples: Church Blessing Services

Steve Race MP (Lab, Exeter) asked: What steps the Church is taking to roll out stand-alone services to bless same-sex couples.

Marsha De Cordova MP (Lab, Battersea): A proposal to enable churches to opt in to the use of prayers of love and faith in stand-alone services is out for consultation and will come back to the House of Bishops in October.

Bishop of Manchester raises potential issues around seal of the confessional in abuse disclosures

The Bishop of Manchester spoke in response to a government statement on tackling child sexual abuse on 22nd April 2025, outlining the Church of England’s response to the issue and the conversation around the seal of the confessional:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, I am grateful for the opportunity to have this short session this evening. I also gave evidence at IICSA in person: I was an expert witness on Anglican religious communities, because that was one of the guises in which Bishop Peter Ball had justified his abuse.

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