UNITED KINGDOM
Gloucester Citizen
THOUSANDS of church volunteers could be pushed into leaving their roles because of “overzealous” criminal record checks.
Figures show the Church of England carried out 58,000 such checks in the last 12 months alone before allowing people to work in parishes or take office roles.
In 2010, Annabel Hayter quit her role as chairman of the Gloucester Cathedral Flower Guild after being told she and her team would have to undergo the vetting process.
She had minimal contact with children, but church authorities were concerned that she and her fellow flower arrangers shared a lavatory with choirboys.
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