9 December 2024
The Chapter – or Board of Trustees – of Wakefield Cathedral met on Wednesday December 4. A busy agenda focused on a ‘deep dive’ into the cathedral’s arrangements for safeguarding, and approval of the budget for 2025, as well as the regular reports received by Chapter.
As the board of trustees of the cathedral, the Chapter is responsible for overseeing the way the cathedral is run. The group of 12 trustees includes the Dean and residentiary canons, plus eight elected or appointed members.
Canon Philip Hobday, who is the cathedral’s safeguarding lead, presented a report on how safeguarding matters are currently being handled. Every year, Chapter must review and approve the various policies relating to safeguarding matters. These include when and how to report serious incidents to the Charities Commission (since the cathedral is a registered charity), a Church of England code of safer working practice, the policy for responding to safeguarding concerns or allegations, and a policy on the recruitment of ex-offenders. Chapter also reviewed an overall Safeguarding Policy Statement, which is on display in various parts of the cathedral.
“We take our commitment to safeguarding very seriously,” commented Canon Philip. “We want the cathedral to be a safe place for everyone, and that means everyone, including Chapter members, playing a part in keeping us all safe.”
The Chapter then turned to a review of cathedral finances, which continue to be challenging. The financial report for the year-to-date in 2024 showed a small shortfall in income compared with expenditure. However, 2025 is a much more difficult picture, with an expected deficit of £185,000. This is due to a number of factors including increases in employers’ national insurance contributions, the reduction in interest rates impacting investment income and the need for repairs and maintenance around our cathedral, offices and housing. Cathedral staff are working hard to seek new income streams, including staging more events and seeking grants.
“It’s not easy for the Chapter to agree a deficit budget,” commented Dean Simon. “But we have to be realistic about the picture for next year, while doing everything we possibly can to mitigate it. Wakefield is not alone in facing financial challenges: many other cathedrals face exactly the same problems.”
The Chapter also took time to review its own performance, striving to ensure that it fulfils its governance obligations by bringing to bear the full range of skills and experience of its members. The point was raised that more could be done to better connect the Chapter to other aspects of the cathedral’s life, and several proposals were made to ensure that.
