Media release: Presbyterian Church releases response to recommendations of Royal Commission into Abuse in Care

16 December 2024

The Presbyterian Church has today published its response to the Commission’s recommendations. It has accepted the recommendations, and where the Commission has not directed specific recommendations to the Church, the Church acknowledges these and will support their accomplishment.  

The Presbyterian Church response is in English, Te Reo Māori, NZ Sign language, and it has also released a separate discussion document by Professor Taiarahia Black on, The Value of Translating the Royal Commission Recommendations and PCANZ Responses into Te Reo Māori.

The Presbyterian Church has committed to participating in Puretumu Torowhānui and cooperating with the government over the adoption and implementation of a nationwide safeguarding regulatory framework, which the Church welcomes.

The Church’s acceptance of the recommendations follows on from its October acceptance of the Commission’s findings.

In considering the Commission’s implementation timetable, the Church has found it requires more time to take the planning of its responses as seriously as the work deserves, therefore its response plan is not yet complete. The Church will establish a Survivor Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) to inform its responses and ensure survivors’ voices are at the very core. 

The Church’s Moderator will also make a public acknowledgement and apology to survivors, their whanau and support networks for historic abuse. While the Church has previously made sincere apologies at a Commission hearing and in its response to the Commission findings, the Church’s Moderator Right Rev Rose Luxford, as well as the Moderator of Te Aka Puahou (Māori Synod of the Presbyterian Church) and Moderator of the Presbyterian Church’s Pacific Presbytery, are working on an apology which requires input from the Church’s survivors. Initially it was thought consultation would be completed by mid to late November, however feedback from survivors is that this sensitive process cannot be rushed; therefore, survivors will have all the space and time they need, working to a timeframe that meets their needs. 

Convenor of the Presbyterian Church’s Council of Assembly, Mrs Katerina Solomona says, “We respect and appreciate the important and necessary work of the Commission. In this instance, our survivors require the space and time to be able to give their input. We are grateful to them as it is a priority for us to make a meaningful apology for abuse, harm, and trauma that occurred in the Church’s care.”

Mrs Solomona says the Church, “Feels the disappointment of not being able to meet the Commission’s implementation timetable as we know survivors have waited too long for justice and to see constructive change. We have found we cannot rush this mahi to have a real survivor centric approach. We are committed to do better for all those in our care past and present, and for all those we have failed.”

The Church will prioritise its response to the recommendations by focusing first on those that will ensure children and vulnerable adults are safe, protected, and their wellbeing supported; and on those that provide survivors with redress and healing, working in partnership with survivors of abuse.

The Church agrees that it is difficult for survivors of historic abuse to distinguish between the Presbyterian Church and the seven regions of Presbyterian Support - which are separate legal entities. Mrs Solomona says this is a challenge for both organisations. “We listen to survivors bravely share their experiences and hear their very real frustrations. We separate entities must find a way to work together to make the process to be heard and seek justice easier. Our Church is committed to this, ready and willing to work with our affiliated social service agencies and schools, and we will initiate this. It is a challenge for us, but it is a much bigger challenge for survivors and that’s why we are committed to finding a way forward.”

Anyone who has experienced abuse involving the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand is encouraged to contact the Police, and to contact the Church - see the Presbyterian Church’s Historic Abuse website page and its Complaints website page for contact details.

ENDS

Notes to the reporter:

Download the Presbyterian Church response in English and in Te Reo Māori below. You can also watch an interpretation in New Zealand Sign Language. Download a discussion document on, The Value of Translating the Royal Commission Recommendations and PCANZ Responses into Te Reo Māori by Professor Taiarahia Black.

All documents and sign language video, are available on the Church website: https://www.presbyterian.org.nz/about-us/contact-us/historic-abuse 

  • See the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand’s response from 22 October 2024 to the Commission’s findings here in English, Te Reo Māori, and New Zealand Sign Language.
  • The Presbyterian Church takes allegations of sexual misconduct very seriously, and Church policy provides that any allegations of a criminal nature are reported to the Police, and complainants are supported to do so. 
  • The Presbyterian Church has a zero tolerance towards abuse which is rigorously enforced. We know this historically has not always been the case at all our churches.