Church audit - Work still to do to ensure child safety

An audit by the Catholic Church’s child protection watchdog has found worrying disparities between dioceses in the way they deal with allegations of sexual abuse. The audit by the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church includes a series of reports on dioceses across the island.

It shows that while most dioceses and religious orders have made great strides in how they handle allegations of abuse, there is still much work to be done to ensure the safety of children.

The report reveals a shockingly low level of criminal convictions against members of religious orders, in particular the Christian Brothers. Only 12 Brothers were convicted of crimes between 1975 and today, despite hundreds of complaints of abuse.