Clergy Vulnerability in the Context of Lone Working

Clergy often work alone for significant portions of their ministry. This includes home visits, pastoral care conversations, late-night calls to parishioners in distress, and time spent in church buildings that may be isolated or poorly secured. Unlike many other professions, clergy are rarely accompanied by colleagues, support staff, or security when carrying out their duties. This exposes them to risks such as:

• Personal safety threats – visits to unfamiliar homes, situations of domestic violence, or encounters with individuals in crisis can escalate unpredictably.

  
  

• Emotional and psychological strain – clergy are frequently the first port of call for people facing bereavement, financial hardship, addiction, or mental health crises. Without peer support or supervision this can lead to burnout and secondary trauma.

  
  

• Safeguarding vulnerabilities – lone working reduces accountability and can create risks both for the clergy member and those they are supporting, particularly in one-to-one pastoral settings.

  
  

• Boundary pressures – because clergy are often perceived as “always available,” they can struggle to establish healthy limits, leaving them open to exploitation, unrealistic expectations, and isolation.

  
  

Churches as De Facto Welfare Providers

Alongside these personal risks, clergy and local churches are increasingly absorbing the pressures of a stretched welfare system. As statutory services become harder to access, many people turn to their local church as the most visible and approachable source of help. This can include:

• Emergency relief – providing food parcels, clothing, and small grants to families in need.

  
  

• Housing and homelessness support – offering temporary shelter, washing facilities, signposting, or advocacy.

  
  

• Mental health support – offering pastoral care to those unable to access overstretched NHS services.

  
  

• Community stability – churches often provide warm spaces, lunch clubs, debt advice, and social connection that prevent people from falling further into crisis.

This welfare role, while vital, places additional demands on clergy, volunteers and congregations who may lack training, funding, or systemic backup. Churches are filling the gaps left by under-resourced public services, but without the infrastructure, professional supervision, risk management, or safeguarding frameworks those services are expected to maintain.

Clergy stand at a critical crossroads between spiritual care and social care. Increasingly, they are expected not only to shepherd their congregations but also to absorb the gaps left by a retreating welfare system. Clergy lone-working patterns make them personally vulnerable, while the expectation that churches will pick up the pieces of the welfare system makes them institutionally vulnerable.

Unless this dual pressure is recognised and resourced, both clergy well-being and the safeguarding of those they serve will continue to be compromised.

-Guarding the Flock