Safeguarding

Promoting safeguarding is a vital and important part of church life

The main areas of Mersey Synod’s safeguarding focus are:
1. Ensuring that churches have the latest policies and procedures in place;
2. Embedding safe recruitment practice;
3. Responding appropriately to allegations and concerns;
4. Delivery of high quality and relevant training

Mersey Synod Safeguarding Officer:

Yvette Hansbury-Robinson
safeguarding@urcmerseysynod.org.uk
07376 053044

For general safeguarding enquiries, relating to safeguarding training, DBS and the annual church safeguarding returns, please contact 0151 722 6590 or safeguardingadmin@urcmerseysynod.org.uk

More about safeguarding training

Safeguarding Training Dates

Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility, and together we can help make our churches safe, welcoming and supportive places for all.

Combined Foundation & Intermediate Training

  • Monday 9 November | 6pm–8:30pm – Online

  • Saturday 14 November | 10:30am–1pm – St Andrew's, Meols, Wirral

  • Monday 30 November | 1pm–3:30pm – Online

Intermediate Safeguarding Training

  • Thursday 12 November | 7:30pm–9:30pm – West Kirby United Reformed Church, Wirral

Advanced Safeguarding Training – Modules 1 & 2 Combined

  • Monday 16 November | 6pm–9:30pm – Online

  • Tuesday 24 November | 12:30pm–4pm – St Columba URC, Hunts Cross, Liverpool

Book Your Place Today

Safeguarding training is an important part of our shared commitment to creating churches where everyone feels respected, valued and protected.

We encourage church leaders, volunteers and those with safeguarding responsibilities to check their training requirements and book onto a suitable session.

Places are limited, particularly for our in-person sessions, so please don't leave booking until the last minute.

https://www.ticketsource.com/urc-mersey-synod

  • Policies and Procedures

    Good Practice 6 constitutes the URC’s only policy and guidance document throughout the denomination. It contains information to assist you in your day to day safeguarding. All the Appendices - forms, templates, Codes of Conduct and model documents are available via the URC website.

    To have the most up to date church safeguarding policy, here is form P1 (GP6): Church Safeguarding Policy

    Also available is form P2, a template Safeguarding Policy statement

    Also find attached the latest Mersey Synod Safeguarding Policy

    Responding appropriately to allegations and concerns

    Download the URC Safeguarding Incident Report form

  • Safeguarding training & events

    Immediate training is currently being delivered in Cheshire, Wirral and Liverpool areas.

    The URC is committed to providing a standardised training programme to ensure that all individuals working with children, young people and adults at risk understand the processes and policies of the URC.

    As a minimum please complete Foundation e-learning individually or in small facilitated groups (just access as a guest).

    The S2 URC Training Framework outlines who/which roles requires what level of mandatory training

  • Safer Recruitment

    Safer recruitment is a framework which uses a range of measures designed to both deter and prevent unsuitable individuals from working (either paid or unpaid) with children and/or adults at risk. A DBS check is only one part of a safer recruitment process that helps to prevent unsuitable or dangerous individuals gaining access to children, young people and adults at risk. For further information see section 2.4 of Good Practice 6.

    Document S3 explains roles eligible for a DBS and will help to establish which role and what level of DBS check is required.

    Safeguarding Report Analysis

    Read our annual report and analysis for safeguarding within the URC. The Report can be found here

Safeguarding – creating safe and welcoming churches

Our Commitment to Safeguarding

Emergency and out of hours contacts


Where a person is in imminent danger of harm or a criminal act may have been committed, the police must be notified immediately on 999. Otherwise, you can call 101 to report a crime or any other concerns that do not require an emergency response.

You can also contact your local authority Emergency Duty Team (EDT) when outside normal office hours (evenings, nights, weekends or bank holidays), this team includes the Duty Manager or on-call senior social worker who can make safeguarding decisions. Use the main local authority safeguarding number (for your area) and many councils have an out-of-hours option that redirects you to the EDT.

URC Safeguarding Office: safeguarding@urc.org.uk
This should only be used if you are unable to contact the Synod Safeguarding Officer during office hours.