Archbishop Of York Faces Calls To Resign Over S£x Abuse Scandal

Archbishop Of York Faces Calls To Resign Over S£x Abuse Scandal

The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, is already facing mounting pressure to resign over his handling of a sexual abuse case, just days before he is due to take temporary charge of the Church of England.

The calls come after it emerged that, as Bishop of Chelmsford, Cottrell allowed priest David Tudor to remain in his position – despite knowing he had been barred from being alone with children and had paid compensation to a sexual abuse victim.

The controversy emerges amid a period of turmoil for the Church, following the recent resignation of Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby over a separate abuse scandal.

Tudor was only banned from ministry two months ago, after admitting historical sex abuse allegations relating to two girls.

During his time as Bishop of Chelmsford, Cottrell was fully briefed on “longstanding safeguarding concerns” about Tudor in his first week in office.

These included Tudor’s previous criminal trials, a 1989 Church ban for sexual misconduct, and a 2008 safeguarding agreement preventing him from being alone with children, a BBC investigation revealed.

The Bishop of Newcastle, the Rt Rev Helen-Ann Hartley, has said Cottrell should step down from his position as archbishop.