UNITED KINGDOM
Nottingham Post
By Tom Norton | Posted: May 28, 2015
More reports of abuse within the Methodist church were recorded in our region than anywhere else in the country, a publication has revealed.
The Methodist Church in Britain has published findings showing that more than 220 reports of historic abuse were made locally, out of 1,885 cases across the country.
The organisation’s general secretary, Reverend Dr Martyn Akins, has issued a full apology to survivors of abuse, calling the findings “a deep source of grief and shame to the Church.”
The most common report of abuse related to sexual abuse, of which there were 914 cases in the UK.
Five hundred and sixty-five cases were classified as “other”, followed by 245 cases of physical, 207 of emotional, 135 of neglect, 87 of financial, 85 of domestic violence, 76 of institutional, 69 of racial and four of spiritual/ritual.
There were also 126 reports made where the category is “not-stated”.
In Nottingham and Derby 225 safeguarding concerns were reported. In some cases, multiple concerns could have been submitted about one individual.
The church has said that a high number does not necessarily indicate more abuse, with at least one other district reporting high numbers because of good record keeping.
Seventy active ministers from Nottingham and Derby were contacted, of which 68 replied.
The independent inquiry was led by Jane Stacey, former deputy chief executive of Barnado’s.
She said: “There are many lessons to be learnt, but the most challenging are those that require a significant culture change throughout the church, and particularly for ministers and church leaders. The Church will need further courage to implement the review’s recommendations, which are far-reaching and call for major changes in both practice and culture.
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