Church of England/Wales information sharing protocol

The Index has not yet recorded a verbatim government response to this recommendation.

No statement on delivery from Church of England has been found in the sources searched. This is separate from the response above.

On 29 March 2021, the Church of England (CoE) stated that the two churches are seeking to strengthen information-sharing arrangements by putting in place an information-sharing protocol and sharing agreement as swiftly as is practicable. The House of Bishops policy ‘Personnel Files Relating to Clergy’ (2018) will be amended to provide for the sharing of a copy of a Church of England clergy file with the Church in Wales when a member of clergy takes a position in the Church in Wales, and the Church in Wales will do the same with any relevant policy changes required on their side. On 6 April 2021, the Church in Wales (CiW) stated that negotiations between the Church of England’s safeguarding information-sharing task group and the Church in Wales will be concluded and policies and private notices updated by July 2021. The CiW stated that the aim of updating these policies are to result in the full sharing of personnel files when clergy move between England and Wales and vice-versa. On 24 June 2021, the Church of England (CoE) announced that the updated June 2021 edition of the House of Bishops' handling of Clergy Personal Files policy supports the Inquiry’s recommendation on data sharing between the Church of England and the Church in Wales, and clarifies the lawful basis on which clergy personal data is processed. On 28 July 2021, the Bishops of the Church in Wales approved a new personal files policy for the clergy , which came into effect immediately.