The Church of England
National Safeguarding Policy and Development Manager
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Job Description
As the National Policy Development Manager, you will play a crucial role in the National Safeguarding Team, offering strategic guidance and managing a team of policy professionals. Reporting to the Deputy Director for Development, you will be an integral part of the NST Leadership Team. This role demands substantial experience in senior-level safeguarding work, public speaking, and complex policy writing.
Responsibilities
- To operate at a strategic level, providing expert advice and guidance to senior church leaders, including the Deputy Director for Development on matters of policy and policy development.
- To lead a team who manages and review effective processes for the development and implementation of a range of national safeguarding policies, codes of practice, and guidance, including the development of project plans for policy development and implementation based on sound project management principles.
- To coordinate the policy team to ensure they undertake the necessary policy and guidance development arising from the implementation of national reviews of the Church, including but not exclusive to: the investigation carried out by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse into the Anglican Church (2020), the review led by Keith Makin in relation to the late John Smyth QC (2024) and the Charity Commission (England and Wales) Regulatory Action Plan for the Archbishops Council (2025).
- To ensure that the policy team work collaboratively and engage all relevant stakeholders in the policy development and implementation process, including survivors, relevant lead bishops, clergy, church working groups, Regional Safeguarding Leads, Diocesan Safeguarding Officers / Cathedral Safeguarding Officers, including through the establishment of project working groups.
- To ensure that engagement takes place with technical / functional experts relevant to the policy field, including academics, legal advisors, HR experts, and data protection officers, as well as researching the evidence base for the policy area, ensuring consistency with national, canon, and ecclesiastical law and policy.
- Ensuring the policy produced by the policy team is relevant to all parts of the Church, in particular: dioceses, parishes, cathedrals, religious communities, and Theological Educational Institutions, and is informed by learning from within the Church (e.g. from Safeguarding Practice Reviews and diocesan / national audits).
- Overseeing the work undertaken with relevant stakeholders to develop implementation plans for new and revised policies.
- Working with NST colleagues at a leadership level to support a cycle of learning and review for national safeguarding policy.
- Following governance processes for the approval of new and amended policies, including the preparation of timely, appropriate papers and reports for the National Safeguarding Steering Group, National Safeguarding Panel, General Synod, and others.
- Leading work to engage with other departments and working parties across the NCIs to ensure that their work and initiatives reflect national safeguarding policy.
- Overseeing the safeguarding e-manual, including the maintenance and support contract and ensuring that it is kept up to date.
- Working with Legal and other relevant functions to amend canon and ecclesiastical legislation relevant to safeguarding, by developing policy instructions, and supporting consultation and the drafting of new or revised legislation.
- Building relationships and working with survivor groups and individual survivors, and colleagues in the NST:
- To ensure that the survivor perspective is present in safeguarding policies.
- To ensure that the survivor perspective is present in other areas of development and activity such as safeguarding training and quality assurance.
- Effectively lead a policy team to prepare briefings, responding to and contributing to communications, and answering queries from dioceses and other Church Bodies on relevant aspects of safeguarding policy.
- This role has line management responsibility for a small team of Policy Officers and a Policy Lead.
- Represent the National Safeguarding Team Senior Leadership Team at strategic and governance meetings, deputising when necessary.
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This is a fixed-term contract ending on 31st May 2027.
Closing Date - 25th August at 5pm.
Essential
QUALIFICATIONS
Skills/Aptitudes
- Able to operate at a senior level, providing a strategic overview on policy matters.
- Able to effectively line manage a small staff team, providing reflective supervision which enables the individual to professionally develop.
- Able to build effective, trusting influential relationships with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders, at all levels.
- Able to lead and manage complex projects through all stages including at a national level.
- Able to develop project plans based on sound project and change management principles.
- Able to lead and facilitate project groups, ensuring they deliver the outcome required.
- Able to communicate complex ideas succinctly and clearly in writing for a range of audiences.
- Ability to analyse and summarise large amounts of complex written information from a range of sources and turn into meaningful policy.
- Able to speak in public to large groups of people in an impactful and engaging way.
- Ability to communicate with survivors and people of all backgrounds effectively both in written form and verbally.
Knowledge/Experience
- Experience of working at a senior level in a complex safeguarding environment.
- Experience of line managing a team of individuals in order to get the best from them.
- Experience in safeguarding of children and/or adults and policy and guidance development in the safeguarding sector.
- Experience of producing clear, effective national policy and guidance for a range of audiences.
- Knowledge of national safeguarding legislation, statutory guidance and policy (e.g. Children Acts, Care Act, Working Together, criminal justice legislation) both current and historical as relevant to non-recent abuse.
- Knowledge of latest research and practice developments in the safeguarding field.
- Experience of working across departments and organisations to support strategic policy development, delivering projects that have measurable impacts.
- Experience of analysis and effective communication of safeguarding recommendations and findings.
- Experience of working with a wide range of stakeholders including senior officials.
- Experience of engaging with children, young people, and adults at risk.
- Experience of working with survivors of abuse.
- An understanding and application of trauma-informed theory, approaches, and practice.
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Personal Attributes
- Able to inspire the trust, confidence, and commitment of others.
- Personal authority, gravitas, and confidence – able to influence and persuade at all levels and with a range of stakeholders.
- Relational: expert in valuing and managing relationships with others as the means of delivering change. Emotionally intelligent.
- Politically astute – understanding, and managing successfully, organisational politics.
- Principled – strong value base and commitment to doing the right thing.
- Brave – willing to challenge others constructively and to be self-reflexive, welcoming feedback.
- In sympathy with the aims of the Church of England.
Desirable
- Experience of safeguarding quality assurance and inspection / audit processes.
- Knowledge of how safeguarding operates in the Church of England.
- Understanding of Church of England national structures and policies.
- Experience of co-production with adults with lived experience.
Education
- Degree level or equivalent experience.
About Us
Please note that you will not be able to view the role description after the closing date. We suggest that you save a copy of this page before you submit your application.
About The NCIs
The National Church Institutions comprises a wide variety of teams, professions, and functions that support the mission and ministries of the Church of England in its vision to be a church, centred on Jesus Christ, for the whole nation - a church that is simpler, humbler, bolder.
We Include. You Belong.
Our Belonging and Inclusion Strategy aims for everyone in the National Church Institutions (NCIs) to feel that they belong, and are valued for who they are and what they contribute. Together, our people contribute in different ways towards our common purpose, whichever NCI they work in and whatever their background.
Living out our values in all that we do, we:
- Strive for Excellence
- Show Compassion
- Respect others
- Collaborate
- Act with Integrity
We believe our commitment to belonging and inclusion fuels our progress and drives us forward. The NCIs are a safe, inclusive workplace for people of all backgrounds and walks of life. We welcome applications from people of all faiths and of no faith. We want to encourage applications from a diverse group of people who share our values. Even if you have never thought about working for us before, if you have the skills and experience we’re looking for then we would like to hear from you.
Use of AI in your application
We appreciate that you may want to use AI tools to help you with your application. We're happy for you to use AI to come up with ideas and help structure your thoughts, but you shouldn't use AI to fabricate information or write your whole application for you. One of our values is integrity, and although we want you to demonstrate your best self, we don't want an AI-generated persona. If you simply copy and paste AI-generated content into your application, this will reduce your chances of success.
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