Survivors of sexual abuse and other forms of abuse in the Catholic Church are being consulted on how best to address the needs of survivors.
The survey aims also to help evaluate the way in which victims have been responded to by the Church.
The Catholic Safeguarding Advisory Service (CSAS)/The National Catholic Safeguarding Commission (NCSC), and The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (NAPAC) and The Survivors Trust have met together and agreed that a survey should be circulated to survivors so that they may have the opportunity to influence the Church’s response. Changes are necessary and a more effective response needs to be developed.
The aim is to allow survivors to set the agenda.
The survey includes questions such as:
- what are your concerns regarding the way the Church is currently responding to the needs of child and adult survivors of abuse?
- what would an effective response from the Church to the needs of child and adult survivors look like?
- what do you identify as the key objectives to help develop effective responses to child and adult survivors?
The survey has been set up through Survey Monkey using the Survivors Trust account. Responses are anonymised and no contact details are asked for.
If you would like to view the survey or participate in it, please click here.
This seems a very constructive step towards addressing the needs of survivors, and reflects the Catholic Church’s efforts to respond more effectively to those coming forward disclosing abuse.
Disclosing abuse is an extremely risky step from the point of view of the survivor as they do not know what response they will receive. This can make a person feel very vulnerable. It is therefore vital that at every level of society, not just in the Church, we become more sensitive in our response.
Please note that the survey applies to all forms of abuse – physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse and neglect. Please do participate.
To read the earlier post on Abused: Breaking the Silence please click here
