DBS and training compliance for Church officers
IICSA · The Anglican Church Case Studies Investigation Report · Issued 21 May 2019 · Addressed to: Church of England
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation, E
Individuals engaged in regulated activity who have failed to undergo a Disclosure and Barring Service check or complete compulsory training should not be permitted to hold voluntary offices within the Church. Failure by ordained clergy to comply with either requirement should result in disciplinary proceedings.
IICSA, The Anglican Church Case Studies Investigation Report · 21 May 2019 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- In May 2023, the government confirmed that this recommendation had been implemented by the Church of England (Government Response to IICSA Final Report, HM Government, May 2023).
Response — verbatim from government
●UK Government
On 27 June 2019, the Church of England agreed that those in regulated roles who have failed to undergo a Disclosure and Barring Service check or complete mandatory safeguarding training should not be allowed to continue in their voluntary role. The Church of England stated that leaders such as clergy who knowingly allow volunteers to remain in regulated roles without having fulfilled these requirements should be considered under Section 5 of the Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure 2016. The Church also stated that the National Safeguarding Team would review key pieces of guidance to ensure that this position is reflected clearly.
UK Government · 22 May 2023 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
No published activity has been recorded against this recommendation yet.
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.