13 April 2015
Church to tackle bullying and harassment
The Methodist
Council has pledged to tackle issues of bullying and harassment
within the Church. The move is a response to concerns raised about
the vulnerability of churches to destructive patterns of behaviour
and affirms the desire for the Church to be a safe and inclusive
community for all.
"It is uncomfortable and difficult to admit that bullying and
harassment do sometimes occur in our churches," said Tony Tidey,
Connexional Wellbeing Adviser. "But the decision made today, and
the recommendations that will be made to the Conference in July,
are something to be proud of. By clearly stating our commitment to
addressing this issue, we are calling everyone in our churches to a
standard of behavior that should reflect our calling as Christians
to treat one another with dignity and respect at all times."
Council members affirmed that bullying and harassment were always
unacceptable and that dealing well with these issues in a church
context is vitally important.
The Council adopted a set of guidelines for promoting good working
relationships and managing Conflict within the Church. It will make
a number of recommendations to the Methodist Conference which, if
passed in July, will see £140,000 earmarked for developing further
work on this matter. The recommendations include the promotion of
the guidelines throughout the Church and the regular provision of
training and support to District Reconciliation Groups to ensure
that they are well equipped to deal with bullying and harassment
issues.
The Council, met from 11 to 13 April at Woodland Grange Hotel in
Leamington Spa. Other issues discussed included safeguarding, a
consultation document on the future of world church partnerships,
the Connexional Central Services Budget and how the Church might
develop a strategic approach to releasing funds for mission through
the sale and lease of property.