Law and religion roundup – 29th September

Safeguarding: Diocese of Oxford

On 17 September 2024, the INEQE Safeguarding Group published the results of its independent audit of safeguarding within the Diocese of Oxford. Commencing in June, the audit was part of a national programme commissioned by the Archbishop’s Council to conduct an intensive and comprehensive review of safeguarding at each diocese and cathedral in the Church of England.

The report’s authors conclude that the Diocese has “a solid safeguarding foundation delivered by its exceptionally well-led and blended Safeguarding Team”; the report commends what it describes as a “safeguarding first” philosophy and congratulated our parishes for the sense of optimism it found on the frontline “where talented Parish Safeguarding Officers (PSOs) lead by example’ and ‘collaboration is strong”.

The audits test the sufficiency of safeguarding arrangements within CofE dioceses, having a particular focus on Diocesan Boards of Finance (DBFs) but excluding Oxford Christ Church Cathedral “since it is a ‘Royal Peculiar’”. The audits took account of the CofE’s new National Safeguarding Standards that provide the structure for this report, and the Audit findings take account of the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) audits, Past Cases Review 2 (PCR2), other relevant material as well as evidence from surveys, focus groups, direct correspondence and interviews. A summary of the report’s findings is in our post here.

Safeguarding: Soul Survivor

In contrast to experience in the Oxford Diocese, the independent Review Report of Soul Survivor by Fiona Scolding revealed numerous shortcomings. In the Church Times,  Madeleine Davies commented:

“For nearly twenty years, the Church which probably had the largest congregation in the diocese of St Albans had no accountability to that diocese in any formal legal sense.”

The Church of England stated:

“This report, which makes stark reading, identifies lessons which must be learnt about culture, practice, governance, oversight, and safeguarding arrangements at both local and national levels. The conclusions and recommendations point to the need for the whole Church to work harder at identifying, building, and supporting positive cultures in which unhealthy leadership and power dynamics can better be challenged. This must include fostering stronger scrutiny and accountability through training, supervision, and governance structures. We welcome the report’s analysis of the dangers of clericalism and what Fiona Scolding rightly calls the ‘misuse of clergy authority’”.

The lead bishop for safeguarding, Joanne Grenfell, subsequently published a statement here. In view of the current initiatives on safeguarding, we have updated and revised our general Index on Safeguarding and also added a specific Soul Survivor heading.

Higgs v Farmor’s School

The appeal in Higgs v Farmor’s School (Religion and belief – direct discrimination) [2023] EAT 89 is being live-streamed on Wednesday and Thursday.

Definition of Islamophobia

letter from Government Faith Minister Lord Khan of Burnley concludes that the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) definition of Islamophobia is “not in line with the Equality Act 2010”. The definition, which describes Islamophobia as a “type of racism”, has long been opposed by free speech campaigners, including the Network of Sikh Organisations (NSO) and the National Secular Society. Both organisations recently wrote to the Government expressing concerns over the definition.

Belgium and burkinis

Was a municipal by-law banning burkinis from public pools in Antwerp a breach of Article 9 ECHR? Unfortunately we’ll never know, because the ECtHR rejected the claim of the applicants in Missaoui and Akhandaf v Belgium [2024] ECHR (application no. 54795/21) on the grounds that they had failed to exhaust domestic remedies. Their initial claim failed in 2017, and after their appeal had been dismissed by the Antwerp Court of Appeal in 2020, a lawyer at the Court of Cassation advised them that they had no chance of lodging a successful appeal on points of law, so they made the procedural mistake of going straight to the ECtHR.

The Court noted that the Court of Cassation had never ruled on the lawfulness of a judicial decision concerning the wearing of a burkini at a public swimming pool. It also observed that there appeared to be divergent case-law on the matter in the lower courts in Belgium. It considered that, in the circumstances, the single negative opinion from a lawyer at the Court of Cassation was not a valid reason for exempting the applicants from lodging a further appeal.

Finding relevant ECtHR cases

The Human Rights Centre at Ghent University regularly scans all recently communicated cases for its research and, in a helpful development, it has decided to make its overviews of communicated cases available (in English) on its website, here.

Speaker’s Chaplain and Canon of Westminster

The Reverend Mark Birch has been appointed by HM The King as a Canon of Westminster and by Sir Lindsay Hoyle as Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons. He will serve as Canon Rector, taking a leading role in the Abbey’s ministry to the public square through services in St Margaret’s Church and the work of the Westminster Abbey Institute.

As Speaker’s Chaplain, he will work closely with parliamentarians, offering pastoral care to MPs and their staff. Mark has been a Minor Canon at the Abbey since 2015. As a Canon of Westminster, he joins the Dean and Chapter, which oversees the work of Westminster Abbey – it comprises the Dean of Westminster and four Canons of Westminster, supported by the Receiver General.

Mark previously served in parishes and as Chaplain of Helen and Douglas House, Oxford, and remains a patron of Treloar’s School and College, which offers education to young disabled people. Before training to become a priest, Mark was a veterinary surgeon.

Quick links

And finally…I

Euronews and Associated Press report that Albania is proposing to establish a “Sovereign State of the Bektashi Order” on ten hectares of land in the capital Tirana, with its own administration, passports and borders, along the lines of the Vatican City but much smaller.

The Tirana-based Bektashi Muslims are a liberal Islamic Sufi order who, according to the last census, make up about 10 per cent of the Muslims in Albania. Speaking at the United Nations last Sunday, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said that the sovereign state would promote moderation, tolerance and peaceful coexistence. According to the Prime Minister, the new state would allow alcohol, permit everyone to wear what they want and impose no lifestyle rules, reflecting the Bektashi Order’s tolerant practices.

And finally…II

The Daily Telegraph reports Bronte sisters memorial given correct dots after 85 years in Westminster Abbey. The novelists used a diaeresis (..) over the E in their surname, but their 1939 plaque in Poets’ Corner omitted it. The full story is given on the Westminster Abbey website.

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