The Charity Commission will conduct a review in around a year’s time to confirm that the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church is complying with a new trust deed, a spokeswoman for the regulator said today.
The Commission yesterday confirmed that it would register as a charity the Preston Down Trust, a congregation of the Brethren, if it accepted the new deed.
A spokeswoman for the regulator said the review would not look at whether the decision to register the Preston Down Trust had been correct, but only whether the Brethren were complying with the new deed. She said the review would take place “around a year after the trust is registered” – a process expected to be complete in the next couple of months.
The Brethren practice a strict doctrine of separation that does not allow them to eat and drink or socialise with non-members, and former members have complained that this prevents them from having contact with family within the Brethren.
The Commission has also received complaints from former members about the disciplinary practices of the Brethren, which include refusing contact with current members who have broken their rules.
The new deed includes a statement of “faith in practice”, which lays down rules governing how Brethren interact with one another and those outside their group. It says the Brethren will give “reasonable assistance” to anyone wishing to leave their group, and will “allow the continuation of family relationships” between former and current members.
Campaigners who have collected evidence of harm caused by Brethren practices said that the new deed and the review were positive steps.
Baroness Berridge (pictured), a Conservative peer who in 2012 called for a “Church-led inquiry” into the Brethren, said the Commission should be “commended for their hard work” and praised “for being the first statutory authority to put on public record that there were elements of detriment and harm” in Brethren practices.
Berridge said that she “would warmly encourage anybody who has been separated from family members who remain within the Exclusive Brethren, to re-establish contact and report any concerns to the Commission” and that she remains “keen to support those who feel that their lives have been adversely affected by the doctrines and practices of the Brethren”.
Laurie Moffitt, a former member of the Brethren who has campaigned to raise awareness of issues around detriment and harm, said that he was encouraged by the decision.
“It’s good that they have been held to account,” he said. “The Commission has taken a sensible step.”
The Plymouth Brethren Christian Church said in a statement that its members were “hugely encouraged and comforted” by the decision that “the Charity Commission has agreed that the doctrines and practices of our church advance religion for the public benefit”.
