1. The Church is required by God to foster relationships of the utmost integrity, truthfulness and trustworthiness. Abuse, harassment and bullying will not be tolerated within the Church of England. All complaints of abuse, harassment and bullying are to be taken seriously and thoroughly investigated.

2. Experience has shown that many concerns can be resolved informally and locally. This might involve the PCC, a line manager, a member of the clergy or someone in a position of authority with whom the person making the allegation is able to discuss their concerns. The informal route should always be tried first.

3. In order to deal with issues which cannot be resolved locally, it is recommended that dioceses should develop complaints procedures. A written procedure will indicate that a complaint will be dealt with fairly and transparently. All parties will know about the process to be used in handling the complaint and the length of time which might be taken to achieve resolution.

4. Attention is drawn to Canon E6 which should be used in dealing with any complaint against a Reader.

5. When a complaint arises which cannot be resolved informally, the Bishop may appoint an independent person to investigate the complaint, who will act as the Bishop's representative and be answerable to him. Because the Bishop may need to receive independent advice, it is envisaged that the person appointed by the Bishop will normally be a person who does not hold any other paid church office or employment in the diocese. The representative may wish to consult others in order to resolve complex matters. People who are appointed as representatives should have good inter-personal skills and experience in complaints resolution. They will need access to training and personal indemnity insurance.

6. It is recommended that dioceses develop complaints procedures along the lines of the following:
a) Where a concern persists, or a matter cannot be resolved locally to the satisfaction of the person making the allegation, a formal written complaint should be made to the Bishop, normally within one year of the event(s) which caused the complaint to be made. Anonymous written complaints will normally be disregarded. Help will be provided for those for whom writing is difficult.

b) The receipt of a complaint will be acknowledged by the Bishop in writing within seven days and will give details of the person who has been appointed to enquire into the matter. The Bishop will normally inform the person against whom the complaint has been made, about the nature of the complaint and the name of the person who has been appointed to investigate the matter. If there is a possibility that the police or social services might be involved, the Bishop will take advice from the Diocesan Registrar about whether to notify the person against whom the complaint has been made.

c) The Bishop's representative will ensure that pastoral care is provided for the complainant and the person against whom the allegations have been made.

d) The Bishop’s representative, who may consult the Diocesan Registrar, should be asked to recommend within 28 days whether there is sufficient substance in the complaint to justify proceeding with an investigation. This period may be extended for one more time, after consultation with complainant and respondent, if the Bishop’s representative considers it to be justified by the case. If the decision is to proceed with the complaint, the Bishop's representative will normally meet both parties to the complaint within 28 days. Both parties will be encouraged to have a friend present at the meeting with the Bishop's representative.

e) The Bishop's representative will convey his or her conclusion in writing to the Bishop within seven days of completion of his enquiry. The Bishop will normally write to both parties within 28 days of the receipt of the letter from the representative, enclosing a copy of the report, the decision, the reasons for reaching it and any action to be taken. The recipients of the report may comment on the content and conclusions of the report within 28 days.

f) In making his recommendations, the Bishop may consider the following courses of action :
(i) a meeting between the complainant, the person complained against and the Bishop and/or Archdeacon involving acknowledgement of hurt and consequent apology;

(ii) on-going supervision and continuous appraisal of the respondent;

(iii) restriction or removal of licence of the respondent;

(iv) any other appropriate action, e.g. police/social service involvement

(v) the care of the congregations to which the complainant and the person who is the subject of the complaint belong;

g) A party to the complaint who is unhappy about the outcome may within 28 days ask the Bishop to review his decision in the light of any new facts.

h) Details of any complaint which is upheld will be kept for a period not exceeding five years in the records of the person complained against by the person or body responsible for that person’s licence.

i) There will be a regular audit of complaints in order to identify particular problems or trends and to highlight any need for further training.