Statement from the Spiritan Provincial to Victims/Survivors of Abuse 

 On behalf of the Irish Spiritan Province, I am hereby providing an update on the progress that we are making in relation to the different elements of our Restorative Justice Programme, including the establishment of a redress scheme. 

Since we launched the Restorative Justice Programme in November 2022, considerable work has been underway across all its 5 pillars: acknowledgement and apology; counselling and therapeutic support; testimony and truth-telling; redress; and memorialisation. 

We continue to work with the organisations representing victims and survivors from various Spiritan schools, Restore Together (through their group), OneVoice (through founder and spokesperson Mark-Vincent Healy), and other representative groups for those who suffered abuse, seeking to ensure that we are responding as fully as possible to the needs and expectations of victims and survivors. These conversations are about subjects not always easy to address, but they are very worthwhile and continue in a spirit of mutual respect and good faith. 

The principal task at present is to secure the financial resources needed to make feasible the establishment of a redress scheme. As I have set out in previous communications, this requires the realisation of assets and the completion of a number of financial and regulatory processes. While these are taking longer than we had hoped, they are essential if a scheme is to be established on a secure and sustainable basis. Our sale of Rockwell Farm in December 2025 was an important part in these processes. 

I acknowledge that our delay in progressing the proposal of a redress scheme is a source of disappointment to many. For that reason, I want to assure victims/survivors and their families that this work continues with urgency and determination. 

I am committed to providing a further update on the progress made as soon as I am in a position to do so. Meanwhile, other pillars of the Spiritan Restorative Justice Programme – independent counselling and therapeutic support, restorative meetings with myself or with another member of the Spiritan Leadership Team – continue to be available to anyone who has been hurt or affected in Spiritan care. 

If you would like to avail of any of these services, please contact: 

• Mr Tim Chapman of the Restorative Justice Team at timchapman@rjteam.net or 
  
• the Spiritan Safeguarding Office at safeguarding@spiritan.ie. 

Sincerely, 

Brendan Carr C.S.Sp.
Spiritan Provincial, Ireland 
On behalf of the Irish Spiritan Province.