23 Oct 2025, 10:00Watford, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom
SEC Safeguarding Investigation Summary Report (Donald Kelly)
The trustees of the South England Conference of Seventh-day Adventists (the “SEC”) commissioned a Christian safe-guarding organisation, thirtyone:eight, to undertake an investigation in response to multiple allegations of inappropriate sexual activity by Dr Donald Balfour Kelly ( “Donald Kelly”), while he was a member of the Chiswick Seventh-day Adventist Church (“Chiswick SDA Church”), a local church congregation in the SEC. Donald Kelly died in 2022.
The investigation was divided into two key parts.
Fact-finding: To ascertain what happened and to consider the accusations against Donald Kelly.
Identifying lessons learned: To evaluate the historical response to the allegations to the extent that they were first reported, identify any shortcomings and make recommendations in the interests of enhancing the SEC’s safeguarding policies, addressing any cultural issues or challenges and in light of the findings make recommendations with a view to improving the way such matters are dealt with by the SEC in the future. The investigators considered what further action needed to be taken in light of lessons learned. The historical response of the SEC to the allegations was evaluated and shortcomings and strengths identified. The investigators made recommendations to enhance the SEC’s safeguarding policies, procedures and processes and address any cultural issues to ensure improvements in the way such matters are dealt with in the future.
Terms of Reference
The Terms of Reference identified the following issues as a focus for the investigation:
A comprehensive assessment of the activities of Donald Kelly in relation to any harm found to have been caused by him whilst he was a member of the Chiswick SDA Church.
Whether any of the alleged abusive incidents were known to anyone in the Chiswick SDA Church at the time.
Why it took such a long period of time for the allegations to come to light.
The extent to which the cultural context at the Chiswick SDA Church provided an environment for any alleged abuse to occur and to not be disclosed and what factors contributed to this.
To what extent the policy, procedure and process for reporting abuse prevented earlier disclosure and/or earlier effective action from being taken.
Whether the SEC’s response to the disclosures and allegations was adequate, timely and protective, and whether the processes adopted and steps taken were in line with the SEC’s policies and guidelines which were in place at the time.
Whether and to what extent steps have already been taken to improve the SEC’s processes and culture to mitigate any risk of repetition of such events or similar.
What lessons still need to be learned by the SEC, and what measures still need to be implemented, to help prevent any incidents from recurring and how efforts to prevent recurrence may be supported by current policies and procedures.
Identify any wider learning points for the General Union, British Union Conference of the Trans-European Division to help strengthen future safeguarding across the denomination.
Findings
The investigators assessed the likelihood of whether the allegations of sexual abuse perpetrated by Donald Kelly happened, based on the balance of probabilities.
The findings were that Donald Kelly sexually abused many individuals around the world whilst he was a member of the Chiswick SDA Church and in his various roles whilst working for the wider SDA Movement in other countries. There were various accounts of Donald Kelly developing relationships with individuals in other countries to “groom”1 them and in certain cases sexually assault them. It was concluded that Donald Kelly also groomed other individuals to allow him access to those he abused.
Survivor accounts point to both short and long-term harm. Those affected continue to suffer significant pain and trauma.
The abuses took place over several decades, possibly as early as the 1960s and continuing to the 2000s. Donald Kelly’s abusive behaviour was described as a “known secret” within the Chiswick SDA Church. Evidence indicates that individual members of the Chiswick SDA Church were aware of the abusive incidents at the time they took place, either because they had experienced the abusive behaviour, had been told of the abusive behaviour directly by victims or victims’ families or because of longstanding rumours. The widespread concern about Donald Kelly’s behaviour led some Chiswick SDA Church members to safeguard children by preventing them from interacting with him.
The investigation found several reasons why the allegations had taken so long to come to light, which include:
Donald Kelly’s status, the nature of the serious allegations being made against a doctor and an esteemed and influential member of the Chiswick SDA Church.
Donald Kelly’s effective and systematic pattern of offending, in which he groomed victims, their parents and other Chiswick SDA Church members to gain their trust.
The lack of safeguarding policies, procedures and mechanisms within the Chiswick SDA Church at the time.
A failure to appropriately deal with complaints made to individual members of the Chiswick SDA Church about Donald Kelly’s abusive behaviour.
A failure to share information about Donald Kelly’s abusive behaviour within the Chiswick SDA Church, the SEC and other conferences around the world once complaints had been made.
The culture of the Chiswick SDA Church at the time, in which individuals were unable to raise concerns, be taken seriously and have appropriate action taken.
Deliberate actions taken by individuals in positions of power and influence in the Chiswick SDA Church to protect Donald Kelly.
The recommendations of the investigators included the following:
The BUC Keeping Children Safe Policy should be reviewed annually.
Senior staff and trustees should understand their current roles and responsibilities for safeguarding.
All pastors and senior staff should complete mandatory, advanced level safeguarding training as part of their induction process, which should be reviewed every two years they are in post.
Pastors should receive supervision and appraisal support for their roles in the church to ensure accountability.
The SEC should review its recruitment policy, processes and procedures to ensure that only suitable individuals are appointed to positions of trust.
The SEC’s whistleblowing policy should allow anonymous reporting by SEC representatives who witness or suspect misconduct from another SEC representative.
The SEC should equip children with self-protection resilience.
The SEC should give a written apology to victims and their families.
The SEC, BUC, the General Conference and any other internal organisation within the SDA Movement where Donald Kelly was offered employment or volunteering roles should make a public statement about the investigation and the harm caused by Donald Kelly.
A public written apology should be given at a global level.
The SEC and wider SDA Movement should provide a Listening Service and, if needed, counselling for those affected by Donald Kelly’s abusive behaviour.
A coordinated safeguarding strategy should be developed at a global level and initiated from the General Conference in the US.
SEC senior staff and trustees should consider creating a paid role for a dedicated safeguarding advisor or team which can work towards developing effective and robust safeguarding structures within the Movement.
Those who knew about Donald Kelly’s abusive behaviour and are still in positions of responsibility should be held to account in line with SDA policies and procedures.
The SEC leadership should communicate a “zero-tolerance” message regarding abuse towards vulnerable people, whether they are adults or children.
An external safeguarding audit should be undertaken.
The SEC leadership team should ensure the victims and complainants involved in the investigation receive appropriate feedback about the validity of their concerns and the outcomes of the investigation.
The SEC should explore whether it can use the Adventist Church Management System as a safeguarding tool to limit the ease with which potential abusers may move from place to place without fear of being discovered.
The SEC leadership team should consider whether it is appropriate for a complaints policy to be introduced to address any potential complaints by church members given the issues raised in this investigation.
The SEC should ensure that the relevant regulators receive a copy of the report.
The current and future SEC leadership team should ensure that the recommendations of the investigation are implemented and progress monitored.
Grooming is a process that "involves the offender building a relationship with a child, and sometimes with their wider family, gaining their trust and a position of power over the child, in preparation for abuse." https://learning.nspcc.org.uk/safeguarding-child-protection/grooming
The trustees of the South England Conference of Seventh-day Adventists (the “SEC”) commissioned a Christian safe-guarding organisation, thirtyone:eight, to undertake an investigation in response to multiple allegations of inappropriate sexual activity by Dr Donald Balfour Kelly ( “Donald Kelly”), while he was a member of the Chiswick Seventh-day Adventist Church (“Chiswick SDA Church”), a local church congregation in the SEC. Donald Kelly died in 2022.
The investigation was divided into two key parts.
Fact-finding: To ascertain what happened and to consider the accusations against Donald Kelly.
Identifying lessons learned: To evaluate the historical response to the allegations to the extent that they were first reported, identify any shortcomings and make recommendations in the interests of enhancing the SEC’s safeguarding policies, addressing any cultural issues or challenges and in light of the findings make recommendations with a view to improving the way such matters are dealt with by the SEC in the future. The investigators considered what further action needed to be taken in light of lessons learned. The historical response of the SEC to the allegations was evaluated and shortcomings and strengths identified. The investigators made recommendations to enhance the SEC’s safeguarding policies, procedures and processes and address any cultural issues to ensure improvements in the way such matters are dealt with in the future.
Terms of Reference
The Terms of Reference identified the following issues as a focus for the investigation:
A comprehensive assessment of the activities of Donald Kelly in relation to any harm found to have been caused by him whilst he was a member of the Chiswick SDA Church.
Whether any of the alleged abusive incidents were known to anyone in the Chiswick SDA Church at the time.
Why it took such a long period of time for the allegations to come to light.
The extent to which the cultural context at the Chiswick SDA Church provided an environment for any alleged abuse to occur and to not be disclosed and what factors contributed to this.
To what extent the policy, procedure and process for reporting abuse prevented earlier disclosure and/or earlier effective action from being taken.
Whether the SEC’s response to the disclosures and allegations was adequate, timely and protective, and whether the processes adopted and steps taken were in line with the SEC’s policies and guidelines which were in place at the time.
Whether and to what extent steps have already been taken to improve the SEC’s processes and culture to mitigate any risk of repetition of such events or similar.
What lessons still need to be learned by the SEC, and what measures still need to be implemented, to help prevent any incidents from recurring and how efforts to prevent recurrence may be supported by current policies and procedures.
Identify any wider learning points for the General Union, British Union Conference of the Trans-European Division to help strengthen future safeguarding across the denomination.
Findings
The investigators assessed the likelihood of whether the allegations of sexual abuse perpetrated by Donald Kelly happened, based on the balance of probabilities.
The findings were that Donald Kelly sexually abused many individuals around the world whilst he was a member of the Chiswick SDA Church and in his various roles whilst working for the wider SDA Movement in other countries. There were various accounts of Donald Kelly developing relationships with individuals in other countries to “groom”1 them and in certain cases sexually assault them. It was concluded that Donald Kelly also groomed other individuals to allow him access to those he abused.
Survivor accounts point to both short and long-term harm. Those affected continue to suffer significant pain and trauma.
The abuses took place over several decades, possibly as early as the 1960s and continuing to the 2000s. Donald Kelly’s abusive behaviour was described as a “known secret” within the Chiswick SDA Church. Evidence indicates that individual members of the Chiswick SDA Church were aware of the abusive incidents at the time they took place, either because they had experienced the abusive behaviour, had been told of the abusive behaviour directly by victims or victims’ families or because of longstanding rumours. The widespread concern about Donald Kelly’s behaviour led some Chiswick SDA Church members to safeguard children by preventing them from interacting with him.
The investigation found several reasons why the allegations had taken so long to come to light, which include:
Donald Kelly’s status, the nature of the serious allegations being made against a doctor and an esteemed and influential member of the Chiswick SDA Church.
Donald Kelly’s effective and systematic pattern of offending, in which he groomed victims, their parents and other Chiswick SDA Church members to gain their trust.
The lack of safeguarding policies, procedures and mechanisms within the Chiswick SDA Church at the time.
A failure to appropriately deal with complaints made to individual members of the Chiswick SDA Church about Donald Kelly’s abusive behaviour.
A failure to share information about Donald Kelly’s abusive behaviour within the Chiswick SDA Church, the SEC and other conferences around the world once complaints had been made.
The culture of the Chiswick SDA Church at the time, in which individuals were unable to raise concerns, be taken seriously and have appropriate action taken.
Deliberate actions taken by individuals in positions of power and influence in the Chiswick SDA Church to protect Donald Kelly.
The recommendations of the investigators included the following:
The BUC Keeping Children Safe Policy should be reviewed annually.
Senior staff and trustees should understand their current roles and responsibilities for safeguarding.
All pastors and senior staff should complete mandatory, advanced level safeguarding training as part of their induction process, which should be reviewed every two years they are in post.
Pastors should receive supervision and appraisal support for their roles in the church to ensure accountability.
The SEC should review its recruitment policy, processes and procedures to ensure that only suitable individuals are appointed to positions of trust.
The SEC’s whistleblowing policy should allow anonymous reporting by SEC representatives who witness or suspect misconduct from another SEC representative.
The SEC should equip children with self-protection resilience.
The SEC should give a written apology to victims and their families.
The SEC, BUC, the General Conference and any other internal organisation within the SDA Movement where Donald Kelly was offered employment or volunteering roles should make a public statement about the investigation and the harm caused by Donald Kelly.
A public written apology should be given at a global level.
The SEC and wider SDA Movement should provide a Listening Service and, if needed, counselling for those affected by Donald Kelly’s abusive behaviour.
A coordinated safeguarding strategy should be developed at a global level and initiated from the General Conference in the US.
SEC senior staff and trustees should consider creating a paid role for a dedicated safeguarding advisor or team which can work towards developing effective and robust safeguarding structures within the Movement.
Those who knew about Donald Kelly’s abusive behaviour and are still in positions of responsibility should be held to account in line with SDA policies and procedures.
The SEC leadership should communicate a “zero-tolerance” message regarding abuse towards vulnerable people, whether they are adults or children.
An external safeguarding audit should be undertaken.
The SEC leadership team should ensure the victims and complainants involved in the investigation receive appropriate feedback about the validity of their concerns and the outcomes of the investigation.
The SEC should explore whether it can use the Adventist Church Management System as a safeguarding tool to limit the ease with which potential abusers may move from place to place without fear of being discovered.
The SEC leadership team should consider whether it is appropriate for a complaints policy to be introduced to address any potential complaints by church members given the issues raised in this investigation.
The SEC should ensure that the relevant regulators receive a copy of the report.
The current and future SEC leadership team should ensure that the recommendations of the investigation are implemented and progress monitored.
Grooming is a process that "involves the offender building a relationship with a child, and sometimes with their wider family, gaining their trust and a position of power over the child, in preparation for abuse." https://learning.nspcc.org.uk/safeguarding-child-protection/grooming