THE next chair of the Church’s Redress Scheme Steering Board is to be Sir Stuart Carlton, an independent consultant on children services, it was announced on Friday.
The Church Times understands that survivors were informed of the appointment in a safeguarding newsletter the previous day.
The Steering Board oversees the development and delivery of the Church’s Redress Scheme, which is intended to provide “meaningful, survivor-focused redress” for people who have experienced abuse in a Church of England context.
The scheme is due to launch later this year, having received final approval from the General Synod last July (News, 18 July 2025). Planning for the scheme began as long ago as 2021, but its creation proved complicated, and required several rounds of drafting and consultation.
Sir Stuart, who is a former corporate director of Children and Young People Service’s at North Yorkshire County Council, succeeds the Bishop of Winchester, the Rt Revd Philip Mounstephen, after the Archbishops’ Council agreed that the next chair should be a person independent of the Church.
The appointment, a note on the Church’s safeguarding pages said, was made after “an open and rigorous process and the appointing panel included two survivors, ensuring that survivor perspectives were embedded in the decision-making process from the outset”.
Sir Stuart, who has several years’ experience in local government and children’s services, was knighted in 2025 for services to children, young people, and families.
He said: “I am honoured to take on this role. The Redress Scheme is an ambitious and vital part of the Church’s response to those who have been harmed. I am committed to ensuring that survivor voices remain central to the work of the Steering Board and that its objectives and outcomes are delivered.”
The announcement said: “Sir Stuart is known for clear, values-driven leadership and a consistent ability to inspire change and deliver innovation at scale. . . He is widely regarded for his ability to instil a strong culture of accountability, quality and continuous improvement.”
churchofengland.org/safeguarding/redress-scheme