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Low Sunday 2009

Child Protection Sunday

(The following is a text of a homily given by the Bishop and the priests of the Parish of Monaghan & Rackwallace on Low Sunday, 19th April 2009. Low Sunday was set aside throughout the Diocese of Clogher to address congregations with where parishes are at in implementing child protection)

Today throughout the diocese of Clogher priests at Sunday Masses are speaking to assure their parishioners of the progress their parish is making at protecting and safeguarding the welfare of children and minors. Nowadays, all organizations and bodies such as the GAA, soccer & swimming clubs, scouts, Community Games are obliged by law to have in place policies and procedures that put children's welfare first. The Catholic parish is also no exception. Parishes too are also accountable, morally and legally, to parishioners that the welfare of children in its care comes first.

Today I want to assure our parishioners

• that the Parish Child Care Committee of Monaghan & Rackwallace is overseeing the implementation of the Safeguarding Children Policy. The committee is made up of Fr. Owen Joe Mc Eneaney and three parishioners.

The Safeguarding Children Policy comprises of 7 essential standards:

1^st standard - having a parish document on keeping children safe

2^nd standard - how to respond to allegations and suspicions

3^rd standard - prevention of harm to children

4^th standard - training parish personnel involved with children

5^th standard - how to get the parish's safeguarding message across to the parish

6^th standard - how access advice and support to someone abused

7^th standard - the ‘how' of implementing and monitoring standards

The Parish Child Protection Awareness Committee is assisting in the implementation and monitoring of these standards.

Those who work with children in the parish under the Safeguarding Children Programme will

• sign a declaration form indicating no criminal convictions
• be vetted by appropriate authorities, by the GCVU (Garda Central Vetting Unit) when its vetting service is ready. You may be interested to know that the priests of the diocese have been already vetted by the PSNI and are awaiting the same with the Garda Central Vetting Unit

If you are concerned about the safety of a child on parish property or in the company of parish personnel you should contact one of the 3 Diocesan Designated Persons for the Diocese, two clerical and one lay, by contacting any of the priests of the parish or the parish designated person whose number is in the porches of the parish churches.

You can access the Parish Child Protection Policy on the Parish website or at the porches of the parish churches. You can also access the Safeguarding Children document on the internet by logging into www.safeguardingchildren.ie. There is also a hard copy in the Priests' House

The basic principle of the Programme is ‘the welfare of the child always comes first.'

We, Bishop Duffy and the priests of the parish of Monaghan & Rackwallace, appreciate the trust you have in us in allowing us to work with your children in

• preparing them for the reception of the sacraments
• in permitting them become altar servers
• in other parish related activities.

Thank you,

The Bishop and priests of the parish.