Safeguarding at Christ Church
The parish of Christ Church Purley takes the safeguarding and care of children and vulnerable adults very seriously.
Christ Church complies with the Church of England and the Diocese of Southwark's A Safer Church Policy regarding the safeguarding of children, young people and vulnerable adults.
All children and adults who may be vulnerable (regardless of age, disability, gender, racial heritage, religious belief, sexual identity) have the right to equal protection from all types of harm or abuse.
Any queries or mail regarding Child Protection, Vulnerable Adults, Disclosure and Barring (DB) forms (CRB previously) should go to safeguarding@christchurchpurley.org.uk
All DBS applications are now completed on line – using a link and personal identity number sent in by email. People must then show the right types of ID from the different routes allowed. Christ Church from 11 November 2025 is now using a new DBS checking service - ThirtyOne:Eight
Our policies can be found here Christ Church safeguarding policy and the policy for responding to domestic abuse - Approved at PCC 13 April 2026
Model Handling, Use, Secure Storage, Retention and Disposal of Disclosures and Disclosure Information - Approved by PCC 10 November 2025
Model Equal Opportunities Statement - Approved by PCC 10 November 2025
Whistle-Blowing Policy & Procedures - Approved by PCC 13 April 2026
Policy on the Recruitment of Ex-Offenders - Approved by PCC 13 April 2026
You can now report any Safeguarding concerns online via this link
or ask in the office for a paper copy (from Jean’s desk)
Who should I contact at Christ Church Purley?
Parish Safeguarding officers:
They can be contacted at safeguarding@christchurchpurley.org.uk
Church Wardens:
They can be contacted via office@christchurchpurley.org.uk
The Diocesan safeguarding team can be contacted as follows:
Through one point of contact into our team by phone and email, these will be allocated accordingly.
Safeguarding referrals / general enquiries: safeguarding@southwark.anglican.org / Telephone: 0207 939 9441 (Mon to Fri 9am – 5pm)
Safeguarding training enquiries: safeguardingtraining@southwark.anglican.org / Telephone: 0207 939 9476
Admin and DBS enquiries: safeguardingadmin@southwark.anglican.org / 020 7939 9478
Emergencies: If you suspect you or someone is at risk of immediate harm, phone 999.
If you are worried that a child, young person, or adult is at risk of being harmed, abused or neglected, contact social services within your local authority area. You can find your local council via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/find-local-council
Support Services
A wide range of local support can be accessed by inputting a postcode into the following resource.
Hub of Hope – UK’s leading support database, provided by a national mental health charity and brings local, national, peer, community, charity, private and NHS services together in one place for the first time, accessed via the following link: https://hubofhope.co.uk/
Contact the team - The Diocese of Southwark (anglican.org)
View the Diocesan team structure and contact details of our Safeguarding Team
Michael Browne, Diocesan Safeguarding Officer
Rebecca O’Neill, Deputy Diocesan Safeguarding Officer
Christina Hope, Assistant Diocesan Safeguarding Officer
Louise Vernon, Assistant Diocesan Safeguarding Officer
Sarah Jones, Assistant Diocesan Safeguarding Officer
Shola Smith, Safeguarding Administrator
Caroline Hollis, Safeguarding Training Coordinator
Information about where to get help with adult and child safeguarding issues
Croydon Single point of contact: 0208 255 2888
Croydon Emergency Social Work Service is for urgent child protection matters that cannot wait until the next working day:
020 8726 6400.
NSPCC Child Protection Helpline: 0808 800 5000
(lines free and open 24 hours).
Phone if you are worried about a child.
Child-line: 0800 1111
(lines free and open 24 hours).
Phone if you are a child or young person and are worried about anything.
National Domestic Violence Helpline: 0808 2000 247
(lines free and open 24 hours).
Phone if you are experiencing domestic abuse.
Samaritans Helpline: 116 123
(open 24 hours).
Phone if you feel you are struggling to cope and need someone to talk to.
Action on Elder Abuse Helpline: 080 8808 8141
(free phone Monday to Friday 9- 5pm).