Inevitable Church of England’s second-in-command will go, says abuse survivor

The Archbishop of York resigning or being forced out of his leading role in the Church of England is “inevitable”, according to an abuse survivor who accused him of a lack of empathy for victims.

Stephen Cottrell, who is currently the Church of England’s second-most senior bishop, is set to take on many of the soon-to-step-down Archbishop of Canterbury’s official functions temporarily From January 6.

Justin Welby announced last month he would resign, after initially declining to do so, in the wake of the Makin Review, which concluded barrister John Smyth – the most prolific serial abuser to be associated with the Church – might have been brought to justice had Mr Welby formally reported him to police in 2013.

This week Mr Cottrell has come under the spotlight regarding a separate abuser, David Tudor.

A BBC investigation reported Mr Cottrell had, while Bishop of Chelmsford, let the priest stay in post in the diocese despite knowing Tudor had both been barred by the Church from being alone with children and paid compensation to a sex abuse victim.

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

Decades earlier, Tudor had been suspended from ministry for five years in 1988, having admitted, according to a tribunal document, having sex with a 16-year-old girl he met when she was a pupil at a school where he was chaplain.

But he was later able to return to working in the church in 1994.

Mr Cottrell, in a statement on Monday, insisted he faced a “horrible and intolerable” situation when he became Bishop of Chelmsford in 2010, having been briefed on the Tudor situation when he first took on the role.

The archbishop said he “acted immediately” within the authority he had regarding the case, and that it was “not possible” to remove the priest from office until fresh complaints were made against him in 2019.

He said he had worked with the Chelmsford diocese safeguarding team prior to that “to ensure the risk was managed”, having had “no legal grounds” to suspend Tudor before 2019.

He said he was “deeply sorry that we were not able to take action earlier”.

Rachel Ford, who described being groomed by Tudor when she was a girl, criticised Mr Cottrell’s statement.

She told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I think it shows a complete lack of empathy for his victims. I think that whoever wrote it for the Archbishop of York should be sacked.”

Mr Cottrell’s statement had hit out at the reporting, with the archbishop saying it was “extremely disappointing that this story is being reported as if it was an abuser being ignored or even protected”.

He added: “Actually, nothing could be further from the truth. And to present it this way only re-traumatises already hurt people.”

Ms Ford told Today: “That’s a terrible way of trying to pass the buck onto the victims by saying that actually it’s more upsetting for us that something’s being done about it than the last 40 years, where nothing was being done.”

She said Mr Cottrell stepping down or being ousted would be “a very important warning that things are changing” in the Church.

Asked what should happen if he tried to stay in post, she added: “I think he should be forced to go. I think it’s inevitable now.

“Evil prevails when good men do nothing, I would say.”

The Archbishop of York is one of the members of the body responsible for appointing the next Archbishop of Canterbury.

It is believed the final membership – usually consisting of 17 voting members – of the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) is expected to be known by spring, with the announcement of the new Archbishop of Canterbury possibly being made in the autumn.

A period of public consultation is due to take place early next year, during which people can have their say on what they want to see in the appointment of the next archbishop, including an option to suggest names to be considered as potential candidates.

The appointment of former MI5 director-general Lord Jonathan Evans of Weardale by the Prime Minister as CNC chairman was announced on Monday.