November 12, 2007

Audit finds diocese in compliance with

“Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People”

An on-site audit of the Diocese of Buffalo’s Safe Environment Program has confirmed that the diocese remains in full compliance with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People. The diocese has been in full compliance with the charter since the annual audits began in 2003.
The audit by the Gavin Group was conducted Oct. 8-10 at the Catholic Center in downtown Buffalo through employee interviews and a review of documentation. In a letter to Bishop Edward U. Kmiec, bishop of Buffalo, William A. Gavin said, “Based on the analysis of the results of the 2007 Full Audit of the Diocese of Buffalo, you have been found to be in compliance with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.”

“I am pleased that the Gavin Group, an independent organization, has once again found the diocese to be in full compliance with the charter,” Bishop Kmiec said. “Our commitment to protecting children and young people in the Church is unwavering, and we continue to use our Safe Environment Program to increase the public awareness about child sexual abuse, and to provide adults with the knowledge and tools they need to help prevent and, if necessary, to respond appropriately to child sexual abuse.”

Since 2002, the Diocese of Buffalo has conducted safe environment training for about 22,000 employees and volunteers who work with children and young people. In addition, about 14,000 criminal background checks on employees and volunteers who work with children and young people have been conducted. For the past two years, the diocese has offered special training for children in Catholic elementary schools and religious education programs.

The Diocese of Buffalo has been proactive in addressing the issue of sexual abuse. In 1990, the diocese implemented its own policy, the “Policy Relating to Sexual or Physical Misconduct.” That policy was updated in 2002 and is now called the “Diocesan Policy Relating to Child Abuse and Sexual Abuse of a Child.” It has been widely distributed throughout the diocese and is available on the diocesan Web site at http://www.buffalodiocese.org.

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