Earlier this year Quest National Committee approved safeguarding policies in respect of children, young people and vulnerable adults. They are based on best practice and each policy and procedure will be reviewed annually by the Committee at the first full committee meeting of the year. This will include checking for any updates required by a change in local or national policy and legislation.
Chris Leigh undertook to be Quest’s first safeguarding officer and he had this to say concerning the policies in the Spring 2019 issue of Quest Bulletin:
“As members know, Quest is an association established to offer support and fellowship to LGBT+ Catholic adults. The organisation does not exist to offer services to, or work with, children. As such, we believe that it is very unlikely that the provisions of its Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy will ever have to be implemented. Quest also recognises that many of its members may have little or no knowledge of safeguarding issues.
“However, it is of course the case that some of Quest’s members have children or that children may contact the organisation from time to time. Moreover, Quest recognises that everyone has a responsibility to safeguard children and promote their welfare. In addition, we acknowledge that vulnerable adults may be members of Quest or possibly contact us seeking support, fellowship or just with enquiries, although of course, the fact that an adult is vulnerable may not be immediately apparent.
“We hope that the existence of the two new policies (and associated procedures) will offer support and reassurance to all Quest members in the event that an issue of the safety of a child, young person or vulnerable adult should arise.”
The policies can be found here: Quest’s Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy