Andy Coates

I've been thinking about how to keep track of our PCC policies, and then I realised that I don't really have a definitive list, so I've started one... but it occurs to me, given the C of E has approx. 12k individually constituted charities with their own trustees, that there perhaps ought to be some central assistance in checking and maintaining them * Safeguarding policy and procedures [Required: the PCC must adopt the Church of England’s parish safeguarding policy and have arrangements in place to follow the House of Bishops’ safeguarding guidance.] * Recruitment of ex-offenders policy [Required if running DBS checks] * Secure handling of DBS information policy [Required if running DBS checks] * Managing risks posed by individuals [Conditional when a particular situation/person presents identified safeguarding risk] * House of Bishops domestic abuse policy and practice guidance [The PCC is required to have due regard to the House of Bishops safeguarding guidance. A separate parish policy is not necessarily required if the PCC follows the guidance through its safeguarding arrangements.] * Code of Conduct [Recommended by the Charity Commission for charities with staff or volunteers] * Serious incident reporting policy and procedure [Strongly recommended by the Charity Commission for most charities and asked about in the Annual Return. Reporting a serious incident is required when it meets the Commission’s reporting criteria.] * Complaints policy and procedure [Recommended; the Annual Return asks whether it is in place. This is not, by itself, a legal requirement.] * Employee disciplinary and grievance procedures [Required information: provide written information about both procedures in the employee’s written particulars or an accessible separate document; standalone policies are not required.] * Trustee conflicts of interest [Strongly recommended - asked about in charity commission annual return] * Bullying, harassment and discrimination [Recommended - asked about in charity commission annual return] * Financial controls document [Strongly recommended - asked about in charity commission annual return. Appropriate controls are essential.] * Investment policy [Conditional if the PCC invests; the Charity Commission Annual Return asks whether the PCC has a policy and procedures for investing charity funds.] * Reserves policy [Strongly recommended - asked about in charity commission annual return. Annual reporting also requires reserves information in the circumstances set out by charity-accounting rules.] * Risk management policy and risk register [Strongly recommended; Charity Commission Annual Return asks whether internal risk management policy and procedures are in place. Risk management is part of trustees’ governance responsibilities.] * Trustee expenses policy [Strongly recommended by Charity Commission. The Annual Return asks specifically about a trustee-expenses policy. Trustee payment and expense rules apply.] * Gifts policy [Optional as a standalone policy; gifts and benefits can be addressed in conflicts-of-interest and financial-controls procedures.] * Campaigning and political activity policy and procedures [Conditional. Appropriate if the PCC engages in campaigning or political activity; charity-law limits apply regardless. A separate written policy is not universally compulsory. Charity Commission Annual Return asks whether these are in place.] * Engaging external speakers at charity events policy and procedures [Conditional. Relevant if the PCC hosts external speakers; arrangements should be proportionate to the events and risks. A separate written policy is not universally compulsory. Annual Return asks whether these are in place. ] * Sickness and absence [Required information: give the employee written information about sick pay and sickness procedures, including how to report an absence. This can be in the contract or another accessible document; a standalone policy is not required.] * Whistleblowing policy [Recommended] * Health and safety Policy [Required if five or more employees. For smaller charities, H&S duties and risk assessment still apply but no written policy required]. * Fire risk assessment and fire-safety arrangements [Required: the responsible person must carry out a suitable fire risk assessment, record it in full, and record the fire-safety arrangements for the premises.] * First-aid arrangements and accident reporting [Required arrangements: provide appropriate first-aid provision and tell employees what it is. RIDDOR reporting and record-keeping duties apply to specified incidents; recording other first-aid incidents is good practice.] * Food safety procedures [Required if food provision is a food business (regular and organised, with continuity and a degree of organisation)] * Lone working policy [Recommended - by Church of England on its Safety Guidance page] * Disability access and reasonable adjustments [Legal duty exists; written accessibility plan recommended] * Data protection privacy notice [Required] Records retention schedule [Recommended; legal duty to retain personal data only as long as necessary is compulsory] * Social media policy [Recommended by the Church of England; safeguarding requirements for online conduct still apply.] * Children’s photography and video policy [Optional. Data-protection & safeguarding requirements apply; standalone policy not universally required.] * Anti-fraud policy [Recommended by Charity Commission, not compulsory as a separate policy.] * Fundraising and donations policy [Optional; a standalone policy is not required by law. The PCC must ensure its fundraising complies with the law and trustees’ duties; particular activities or arrangements may require specific procedures or written agreements.] * Volunteer policy [Optional; the Church of England's Managing volunteers page suggests thinking about documenting a policy for volunteers that can be shared with them, setting out your responsibilities to them and theirs to you.] * Premises and hall hire policy [Optional. Hall-hire terms and procedures are useful, but a standalone policy is not generally required by law. Specific premises, fire-safety and other legal duties still apply.] * Churchyard management arrangements [Optional. If the PCC is responsible for the churchyard: maintenance and safety duties apply, and diocesan Churchyard Regulations and faculty rules must be followed. A separate general policy is not specifically required.] * Rough-sleeping policy [Optional - useful if this arises on church premises. CofE safeguarding guidance treats rough sleeping as a situation to assess in context; it isn’t automatically a safeguarding incident or antisocial behaviour.]