United Reformed Church Safeguarding January 2025
[email protected] www.urc.org.uk/safeguarding1
January 2025
We hope you feel refreshed after the break and can
look forward positively to a safe 2025.
The last few months have been busy time for the
Safeguarding team with updating policies and
delivering training.
SSOs met with their Children and Youth Development
Officer counterparts, and in March will have their
annual meeting with Moderators to further grow
professional connections.
Annual Safeguarding Returns
The Annual Safeguarding Return (ASR) portal is open and ready to access!
ASRs provide the denomination with important information that helps us to better help you.
It is not a test but rather it provides a snapshot of where the denomination is at, and it
helps the safeguarding team identify gaps in knowledge and delivery and where we can
offer assistance. It also gives us an opportunity to celebrate best practice in our churches.
We thank you in advance for completing the ASR as we do appreciate how busy you all are.
If you do not have your log in details for the portal, please do contact your synod. Similarly,
if there are questions on the online form that you find tricky, please contact your Synod
Safeguarding Officer for guidance. There are useful contacts, guides and downloadable
forms on the URC Website.
Please note that the portal is will close for ASRs on Friday 28 February.
United Reformed Church Safeguarding January 2025
[email protected] www.urc.org.uk/safeguarding2
Training Update
Mandatory Training
The United Reformed Church offers mandatory training –
that is Foundation, Intermediate and Advanced which is
organised, bookable and delivered by your Synod.
What level of training you need very much depends on your
role and you will find this chart helpful. Please do get in
touch with your Synod for further details and to book a
course.
The Safeguarding Foundation course is available as an E-Learning package which can be
taken at your own pace and in your own time. It is available on the URC Learning Hub.
Each month we take the list of those who have taken the e-learning package and create a
training record on the URC’s database to demonstrate completion of the course.
Specialist/Supplementary Training
Additionally, the URC runs two hour Zoom sessions open to everyone on a variety of
topics which may complement your current safeguarding knowledge and these can be
booked via Emma Pearce [email protected]
Upcoming Specialist Safeguarding Courses via Zoom:
- 11 February 7.00pm Modern Day Slavery
- 13 February 1.30pm Elders as Trustees
- 04 March 7.00pm Substance Abuse
- 18 March 1.30pm Refugees & Asylum Seekers
- 27 March 7.00pm Adult Safeguarding
The full list of dates and times for the first half of 2025 is available on the Safeguarding
pages on the URC website.
United Reformed Church Safeguarding January 2025
[email protected] www.urc.org.uk/safeguarding3
Due Diligence Checking (DDC) News
Price Increase for DBS Checks
DDC has increased its prices as follows:
DBS Check Old Fee New Fee
Basic DBS check £18.00 £21.50
Standard DBS check £18.00 £21.50
Enhanced DBS check £38.00 £49.50
The denomination absorbs the fees for Standard and Enhanced checks and applicants are
not charged. Basic checks, however, are subject to payment by the applicant (this is set by
the Disclosure and Barring Service and not by DDC or the URC).
Where an applicant requiring a Basic check has agreement from their church (or Synod) to
reimburse them the fee, please do so.
Setting up DBS Applications
DDC has informed us that an unprecedented amount of DBS applications for England and
Wales were withdrawn in 2024. We are keen to reduce this number as we pay for each
application we set up regardless of whether it is completed or withdrawn.
When setting up applications, here are some pointers that may help you:
Incorrect name- where you set up an application and you have entered the incorrect
name, the applicant can correct their name directly onto the online application.
Multiple roles requiring a DBS – where an individual has multiple roles we would
encourage you to use the role that aligns to the highest level of check. Eg. if you have
a Church Treasurer who is also a Church Elder, they do not need two disclosures but
rather you would pick the role that has the higher level of check (in this case, Church
Elder).
Paid or Voluntary role – Before picking the role for the application, be clear whether the
role is paid (PAID) or voluntary (VOL) so that you can pick the correct one. You can
refer to the current DBS/PVG check matrix on the URC website.
Seeing an application through to completion – DDC will chase the applicant and so can
you. If the process is incomplete DDC will delete the application after 6 months so please
do feel free to gently chase applicants and assist them where necessary. DDC is a
wonderful resource of assistance so please do feel to contact them for advice.
United Reformed Church Safeguarding January 2025
[email protected] www.urc.org.uk/safeguarding4
DDC Verifier Training
We thank for your continued efforts to ensure that any person with a role at your church
that requires a DBS/PVG check has one.
For those of you who are administering DBS checks for your
church in England and Wales we offer some short training
sessions on DBS verifying and Safer Recruitment on Zoom.
These are two hour sessions, the first hour is with a
representative of DDC who goes through the mechanics of a DBS
check and the second hour is with our Training and Development
Coordinator who puts DBS checks in the context of wider safer
recruitment.
The dates for 2025 are as follows:
o Thursday 6 February 10.30am-12.30pm (fully booked!)
o Thursday 8 May 7.00-9.00pm
o Wednesday 10 September 1.00-3.00pm
o Thursday 20 November 7.00-9.00pm
If you wish to book on any of these sessions, please email [email protected] with
your name, role, church and preferred session date.
GP6 resources in other languages
We are planning to make some key resources – such as the safeguarding poster and
policy template – available in a range of languages.
If you have any suggestions for languages that would be particularly helpful in your setting,
please email our Policy Development Coordinator [email protected]
United Reformed Church Safeguarding January 2025
[email protected] www.urc.org.uk/safeguarding5
Behaviours in Church life
Just a reminder that as well as Good Practice 6 and your Churches or Synods
Safeguarding Policy there are also other guidance documents to support you if you
experience behaviour from someone in church life that is not acceptable and makes you
feel uncomfortable.
Your Synod Safeguarding Officer can support you to raise this type of concern. For more
information read Section 2.10 (Pg39) of Good Practice 6 and Resource G5.
Save the date 2025 Safeguarding Symposium
Following on from the success of the 2023 Safeguarding Symposium we
are pleased to announce that the 2025 Symposium will take place on
Wednesday 15 October 2025 from 2pm on Zoom. Please watch this
space for further announcements and ticketing details.