Church of England 'not fit for purpose', bishop says, after Archbishop of York issues apology

The Church of England's deputy head of safeguarding has said the institution's rules "are not fit for purpose" after the Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell said he is "deeply sorry" action was not taken earlier over a sex abuse case.

Julie Conalty, the bishop of Birkenhead, told Sky News programme The UK Tonight she "can see issues around lack of accountability" in the church.

Ms Conalty, the church's deputy lead bishop for safeguarding, said its systems "don't operate like they would in other organisations".

"So the way in which clergy are appointed as office holders not employees, and the laws and rules that we have around imposing clergy discipline, are not really fit for purpose," she said.

"And yet we as a church have allowed them to be the rules under which we operate and it doesn't feel fit for the 21st century, maybe not even for the late 20th century."

Mr Cottrell, the Archbishop of York, is due to temporarily take over from the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who will step down on 6 January over failures in handling a separate sex abuse case in the church.

However, his position has been called into question after a BBC investigation and he is facing calls to resign.

The BBC investigation claimed when Mr Cottrell was Bishop of Chelmsford he let priest David Tudor stay in post in the diocese, despite knowing he had been banned by the church from being alone with children and paid compensation to a sexual abuse victim.

Tudor was banned from ministry for life this year after admitting what the church described as serious historical sexual abuse involving two girls aged 15 and 16.

Reverend Martine Oborne, a vicar in west London, called on Mr Cottrell to resign, adding: "People have the right to know that the church is a safe place."

Ms Oborne, chair of Watch (Women and the Church), told Sky News: "There are some serious failings that need to be addressed. I think he could have done more, sooner."

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Archbishop of York says he 'acted immediately'

In a statement on Monday, Mr Cottrell said he "acted immediately" with the authority he had regarding the case.

Mr Cottrell said he faced a "horrible and intolerable" situation when he became Bishop of Chelmsford, having been briefed on the situation.

He said: "News coverage incorrectly implies that no action was taken until 2024. That is not the case.

"In my capacity as Bishop of Chelmsford, I suspended David Tudor from office at the first opportunity, when a new victim came forward to the police in 2019.

"Up until 2019, there were no legal grounds to take alternative action.

"When I joined the Chelmsford diocese in 2010, I worked closely with its very professional safeguarding team to ensure the risk was managed.

"But it was not possible to remove David Tudor from office until such time as fresh complaints were made, which happened when a victim bravely spoke to the police.

"Once this happened in 2019, I acted immediately. I suspended David Tudor from all ministry pending the investigation and subsequent tribunal hearing in which he was removed from office and prohibited from ministry for life."

'This should never have happened'

The Church of England said the BBC programme showed a "catalogue of past safeguarding decisions that allowed someone who was considered a risk in the 1980s to return to ministry in the 1990s".

"This should never have happened," it added.

Mr Welby announced he would resign last month after initially refusing to do so following the Makin Review into the handling of allegations against serial abuser John Smyth.

The report found Smyth, who died in 2018, could have been brought to justice if Mr Welby had reported him to the police in 2013.

(c) Sky News 2024: Church of England 'not fit for purpose', bishop says, after Archbishop of York issues apology