Praesidium Inc. is a private corporation and an international leader in abuse risk management based in Arlington, Texas and is not sponsored by the Catholic Church. It offers professional assistance in implementing and maintaining safe environments. In response to the clergy sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic Church, the Conference of Major Superiors of Men (the leadership organization for men’s religious institutes) partnered with Praesidium to develop 20 standards specifically for “Catholic Religious Institutes”. Its work has been presented to the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life at the Holy See. Westminster Abbey is currently working towards attaining Praesidium Accreditation, a process that requires demonstration of adherence to these standards and the documentation of compliance with policies and procedures relative to:
- Prevention standards review screening of new members, educational programs for initial and ongoing formation, systems of support and accountability, and how the Institute manages internal reports of potential boundary violations.
- Responding standards review the Institute’s response to reports of suspected abuse and the role of external review boards.
- Supervision standards review the management and supervision of a member who is known to have abused a minor.