Diocesan Safeguarding Gathering- Belfast

It is with much pleasure that Bishop Alan McGuckian SJ would like to invite you to a Diocesan Safeguarding Gathering on

Thursday 24 September 2026

7:00pm

120 Cliftonville Road, Belfast, BT14 6LA

Promoting a culture of safeguarding remains a priority for the Church for this Diocese and every Christian community and parish.

The Diocese of Down and Connor is committed to promoting the welfare and safety of all its children, young people and adults.

This commitment is made real and embodied by numerous parishioners and individuals.

We commend and acknowledge the commitment, dedication and voluntary service of our Safeguarding Committees their leaders and members and priests.

Your ongoing involvement helps to promote an ethos of safeguarding in our Diocese.

We view this gathering as one way of expressing my gratitude to all those across our Diocese who give unstinting service to the life of our Church.

There will be a prayer service/vespers in the Mater Dei Chapel to begin the gathering after which refreshments will be served. The Diocesan Safeguarding Team will give a brief resume of some recent local safeguarding developments and resources.

Please share this invitation with representatives of your Parish Pastoral Councils and other stakeholders within the Parish or Family of Parishes who may have a particular interest in the area of Church safeguarding.

There are limited spaces for this event, so please reserve your place as soon as possible via the booking link below. There will be 2 other events across the Diocese in October 2026. These will take place in Ballymena and Newcastle

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR THIS  EVENT

Reservations for this event will close on Monday 21st September 2026

If you any queries or questions please contact the Safeguarding office via email office@soddc.org or telephone 028 9049 2798.

Onus (Domestic Abuse and Violence) ‘Safe Place’ Evening Webinar

What is SafePlace?

It is estimated that 1 in 4 women and 1 in 9 men will experience domestic abuse during their lifetime. Between April 2021 and March 2022 there were 33,186 domestic incidents and 21,723 domestic crimes recorded in Northern Ireland. We should also not forget the effect of this on children also living in domestic abusive environments.

Safe Place is a simple but very effective initiative that allows any church, business, organisation, school or community group to provide information and signposting to anyone affected by domestic and sexual abuse.

The Safe Place initiative does not involve providing direct support services to anyone living with domestic abuse, instead aims to raise awareness and build capacity to ensure anyone affected by domestic abuse is directed to support services.

Your Church can become a ‘Safe Place’

To become a Safe Place, churches need to attend a Safe Place Webinar and complete a simple registration form. They are then supplied with a range of ‘Safe Place’ resources and ongoing support from Onus.

What will the Webinar cover?

  • What is a Safe Place?
  • What would I have to do as a Safe Place?
  • What are the different types of abuse?
  • Who is affected by domestic abuse?
  • How do Safe Places make a difference?
  • What is the Safe Church Pathway?

How long does the Webinar Last and how is it delivered?

90 minutes via zoom – EVENING SESSION (18:30 – 19:30)

How to register

If your Parish are interested in this initiative ideally you would need to a minimum of two people attending the Webinar.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Adult Safeguarding Training for Leaders – BELFAST Session 2 of 2

WHO SHOULD ATTEND THIS SESSION

This training is for clergy and volunteers who have regular and or direct contact with adults – coordinating/organising adult activities (e.g. SPRED Leaders, Luncheon Club Leaders, visitation team Leader, Leaders of Eucharistic Ministers).

The training will be delivered face to face at 120 Cliftonville Rd, Belfast, BT14 6LA  (total length 5 hrs – 2.5hrs per eve).

*Participants must be able to attend both dates.

COURSE CONTENT

The training will cover:

•            Legal and policy context
•            Values and principles
•            Key definitions
•            Categories of abuse and possible indicators
•            Procedures for reporting concerns
•            Code of behaviour
•            Planning and managing activities.
•            Risk management
•            Confidentiality issues
•            Creating a person – centred environment

SESSION TIMES/LOCATIONS

This session is taking place virtually at 120 Cliftonville Rd, Belfast

The session will start promptly at 6:30pm

 

 

Adult Safeguarding Training for Leaders – BELFAST Session 1 of 2

WHO SHOULD ATTEND THIS SESSION

This training is for clergy and volunteers who have regular and or direct contact with adults – coordinating/organising adult activities (e.g. SPRED Leaders, Luncheon Club Leaders, visitation team Leader, Leaders of Eucharistic Ministers).

The training will be delivered face to face at 120 Cliftonville Rd, Belfast, BT14 6LA (total length 5 hrs – 2.5hrs per eve).

*Participants must be able to attend both dates.

COURSE CONTENT

The training will cover:

•            Legal and policy context
•            Values and principles
•            Key definitions
•            Categories of abuse and possible indicators
•            Procedures for reporting concerns
•            Code of behaviour
•            Planning and managing activities.
•            Risk management
•            Confidentiality issues
•            Creating a person – centred environment

SESSION TIMES/LOCATIONS

This session is taking place at 120 Cliftonville Rd, Belfast

The session will start promptly at 6:30pm.

 

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Adult Safeguarding Training for Leaders – Virtual Session 2 of 2

WHO SHOULD ATTEND THIS SESSION

This training is for clergy and volunteers who have regular and or direct contact with adults – coordinating/organising adult activities (e.g. SPRED Leaders, Luncheon Club Leaders, visitation team Leader, Leaders of Eucharistic Ministers).

The training will be delivered virtually on 2nd & 3rd April 2025* starting at 6:30pm (total length 5 hrs – 2.5hrs per eve).

*Participants must be able to attend both dates.

COURSE CONTENT

The training will cover:

•            Legal and policy context
•            Values and principles
•            Key definitions
•            Categories of abuse and possible indicators
•            Procedures for reporting concerns
•            Code of behaviour
•            Planning and managing activities.
•            Risk management
•            Confidentiality issues
•            Creating a person – centred environment

SESSION TIMES/LOCATIONS

This session is taking place virtually via Zoom.

The session will start promptly at 6:30pm. If you are not in the Zoom waiting room by this time, you will not will be admitted to the session.

JOINING INSTRUCTIONS

Please choose a quiet room to sit in, whilst on the virtual session.

Please ensure that your camera remains on at all times.

If for some reason, you are no longer able to attend the session, please let the Safeguarding Office know as soon as possible so that your space can be allocated to someone else.