A Culture of
Safeguarding
We recognise the personal dignity, uniqueness and rights of all children, young people and adults at risk towards whom we have a special responsibility and a duty of care. We are committed to safeguarding and promoting good practice in ministry by all our sisters, staff, associates and volunteers at all times. We consider the welfare of all children, young people and adults at risk to be paramount. We consider the welfare of all children, young people, and adults at risk to be paramount.
This commitment directly relates to the fact that we are all made in the image of God and the Church's common belief in the preciousness, dignity, and uniqueness of every human life. We start from the principle that each person has a right to expect the highest level of protection, love, encouragement, and respect.
We are committed to the One Church Approach to safeguarding by implementing the changes needed and ensuring we respond to survivors promptly and compassionately. As part of our commitment, we will liaise with the Religious Life Safeguarding Service (RLSS) and statutory agencies to ensure that any allegations of abuse of those in our care are promptly and fairly dealt with.
Additionally, through training and an ongoing engagement with safeguarding we will enable all our sisters, staff, and volunteers to make informed and confident decisions regarding any concerns raised.
If you have any concerns please get in touch with our Safeguarding Lead, Liz Jones.
Safeguarding Statement 23rd March 2025
We, the Presentation Sisters, have been made aware of a number of concerns raised in regard to the treatment of pupils at the Nagle Preparatory School, Matlock (commonly referred to as Lilybank), during the 1970’s. We are deeply saddened and appalled to hear accounts of harsh conditions and punishments which were handed out by some Sisters whose role was to nurture and safeguard the children in their care. We recognise that children require a safe environment in which to flourish. This was not consistently provided to the pupils at the Nagle Preparatory School during this time. We apologise for the pain and trauma that pupils have endured and continue to experience in their adulthood.
In moving forward, we would like to make a public apology for the harm caused. We also wish to provide a public assurance that we are working with our professional safeguarding provider, Religious Life Safeguarding Service, and our regulator, Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency, in order to help safeguard all from abuse.
We encourage people to contact our Safeguarding Lead, Liz Jones, at the link below, should they wish to report harm or for further information surrounding the Presentation Sisters’ commitment to safeguarding.
Resources
Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency - CSSA
Public Calls for Information
The Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency (CSSA) is conducting a thematic inspection on survivor engagement and support across Religious Life Groups (RLGs) and dioceses.
The purpose of the public survey/public call out is to invite survivors to contribute their experiences of contact with an RLG or diocese following abuse. The experiences may be new or ongoing, as well as those connected to non-recent abuse. The information will be used to gain a better understanding of survivors’ experience with church bodies, share best practice and to develop ways to improve this experience for both survivors and church leaders. While our primary focus will be on the period from July 2024 onwards, we do not wish to limit what survivors choose to share and value every response.
Please support our public call out through sharing as widely as you can two links:
Information about the survey Public Calls for Information
The direct link to the survey:
Religious Life Safeguarding Service - RLSS
Safe Spaces is a free and independent support service, providing a confidential, personal and safe space for anyone who has been abused by someone in the Church or as a result of their relationship with the Church of England, the Catholic Church in England and Wales or the Church in Wales.