Buxton church stands in solidarity with victims of abuse

The parish was rocked by the abuse scandal after a former parish priest, Fr Paul Cullen, was jailed in 2012 for abusing three young children in the 1980s. He died in prison in 2018.

The Bishop of Nottingham, Patrick McKinney, encouraged St Anne’s parishioners to hold a Day of Prayer, and attended the evening service to publicly apologise to the victims and the people of the parish.

He said: “My prayers are with all the victims of sexual abuse, but particularly with the survivors here in Buxton.

“As the current Bishop of Nottingham, I apologise to you for his (Paul Cullen’s) actions, for the way the diocese responded to them and most importantly, for the abuse and hurt the victims and their families have continued to experience.”

He also apologised to the people of St. Anne’s parish for the hurt Paul Cullen caused them. “I can well understand your very real feelings of having been betrayed by him as your parish priest,” he said.

He pledged his commitment, and that of the diocesan safeguarding team, to ensure that everyone in this diocese is kept safe, especially the most vulnerable. He promised that his door, and that of his safeguarding team, is always open to anyone affected by abuse.

The church stayed open all day for group prayer sessions and prayer stations were set up around the church for personal prayer which helped people to reflect and pray for the victims and survivors.

Fr Dominic Allain, from ‘Grief To Grace’ (https://www.grieftograceuk.org/) who provide retreats for victims and survivors of abuse, and Antonia Sobocki, from LOUDfence UK, (https://loudfence.com/) a pro-healing and reconciliation movement, joined them for the day and spoke to both groups and individuals.

As part of the day, a LOUDfence was held where people are invited to tie ribbons and tags of all colours and styles to railings, around trees and inside the church as a visible act of solidarity with the victims of abuse; this enables people to pray for them and send messages and prayers of support.

Parish Safeguarding Representative, Margaret Swift, said the LOUDfence event was very moving. “The act of tying ribbons to inside and outside the church is a visible act of solidarity with the victims of abuse” Margaret told us.

“This very emotive action encouraged all our parishioners to become involved personally with the event and has subsequently become quite an attraction to passers-by and tourists.”

Everyone is invited to come and have a look at the display of ribbons, messages and prayers which will be on display for the next few weeks.

If you are a victim of clergy sexual abuse, and would like to talk with someone, support is available. Please contact:

Rachael Campion - Director of Safeguarding, Nottingham Diocese

tel:01159539849 email: [email protected]

Safe Spaces is a free and independent support service, providing a confidential, personal, and safe space for anyone who has been abused through their relationship with the Church. Helpline: 0300 303 1056 (answerphone available outside of opening times)

Email: [email protected]

Website: https://safespacesenglandandwales.org.uk/.