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The Presbyterian Church in Ireland (PCI) has faced scrutiny after it emerged that the organization failed to maintain records related to a child sexual abuse case reported years ago. Ian Elliott, a safeguarding specialist consulted by the church, revealed to BBC Spotlight NI that no documentation could be found at the PCI’s Belfast headquarters concerning counseling provided to alleged victims from a County Donegal parish. Additionally, a document reviewed by the BBC indicated the church did not notify An Garda Síochána, the Irish police, when the case was initially raised.
Ian Elliott, an internationally recognized expert in safeguarding, was brought in by the church in 2015 to provide guidance on the matter. At that time, a minister informed him that an adult congregant in Donegal, now deceased, had abused several children decades earlier, yet no action had been taken. Although Elliott advised the church to report the abuse to the police, he was not asked to handle the issue further due to his international commitments. When he revisited the case in 2023 as a member of a PCI safeguarding panel, no records existed to evidence the allegations or any follow-up. “That was shocking. And that really rang alarm bells for me,” Elliott stated. An email from a Donegal minister acknowledged that the case “had been completely mismanaged” and “this information should have been shared with the appropriate authorities, and was not.”
Dr Jacqui Montgomery-Devlin, who held the position of the church’s safeguarding officer in 2023, confirmed that there was no trace of case documents when the issue was raised a second time. She said, “There were no records to suggest that that ever happened.” Following this, Elliott issued two warnings to PCI about potential criminal and civil consequences related to their handling of abuse allegations. One memo addressed to Rev Trevor Gribben, then Clerk of the General Assembly, emphasized that failing to keep records might lead the church to be seen as “guilty of serious neglect.” Elliott also reported receiving no reply from Rev Gribben. The PCI declined to comment further due to an ongoing investigation by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).
Rev Trevor Gribben resigned in November, admitting that “people have been placed at risk” owing to safeguarding failings between 2009 and 2022. Reverend Dr Richard Murray took over as the new moderator earlier this year. In 2024, Ian Elliott sent another caution to the church’s safeguarding panel, warning that failure to report abuse cases to the authorities could result in prosecution, and subsequently resigned from the panel. The church admitted last month it “failed to make referrals to statutory authorities when these were required.” The PSNI has since launched a criminal investigation into the safeguarding failures. Meanwhile, An Garda Síochána disclosed that it had been cooperating with the PSNI regarding the investigation into PCI, acknowledging potential limitations due to evidence availability and deceased suspects or witnesses, but emphasized their commitment to handling complaints sensitively and pursuing investigations when possible.
Former Presbyterian moderator, Rev Dr Norman Hamilton, spoke publicly for the first time since the scandal emerged, reflecting on longstanding issues within the church. While aware of past abuse allegations during his tenure, he said he personally reported incidents to police and attempted to provide support. Nonetheless, he acknowledged that “there was a low level of awareness of what the proper procedures were,” and lamented the church’s failure to develop a “rigorous, victim centred, multi-dimensional, pastoral response.” Expressing his dissatisfaction with the governance systems, Hamilton remarked, “I am troubled – (that) the governance systems in our church haven’t worked, that the accountability mechanisms haven’t worked, that the multiple layers of committees and councils haven’t worked.” He stressed the need for substantial reform and expressed hope for renewed clarity and restored confidence in the Presbyterian Church’s ministry going forward
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