Abuse scandals throw Church of England into staffing crisis

Reputation risk ‘at an elevated level’ in wake of John Smyth case and historical safeguarding failures, says report

Fiona Parker

THE TELEGRAPH

09 June 2025

John Smyth, who ran Christian youth camps, carried out psychological, sexual and physical abuse over five decades Credit: CH4 NEWS/UNPIXS

The organisation that manages a large part of the Church of England’s assets is bracing itself for a recruitment crisis in the wake of its latest abuse scandal, a report suggests.

The Church Commissioners of England has described its reputational risk as “at an elevated level” after the Anglican Church apologised for more historic safeguarding failures and a review into one prolific abuser prompted the Archbishop of Canterbury’s resignation.

It comes as the body that manages the Church’s endowment fund – its largest source of revenue – announced a 10.3 per cent return last year, taking the value of the fund to £11.1 billion at the end of last year.

In November, the extent of abuse carried out by barrister John Smyth, who abused up to 130 boys and young men over several decades, was revealed in a damning report. Smyth, who died aged 77 in 2018, used his role at Christian summer camps to meet victims, yet his crimes were not reported until 2013, decades after many were carried out.

The 2024 Makin review, found that the “abhorrent abuse” by Smyth could have been exposed four years earlier if Justin Welby, the then Archbishop of Canterbury, had contacted the authorities and done more to follow up on reports.

Mr Welby announced his resignation days after the report, and formally ended his tenure earlier this year. A replacement for the highest position in the Church of England is yet to be decided, with the selection process not set to conclude until later this year.

The Makin review found that Justin Welby had been given a detailed account of John Smyth’s abuse in 2013.

A section of the 2024 Church Commissioners for England annual report suggested there were concerns about the effects on its own recruitment.

The report said: “Reputation is important for any charity, and the Church Commissioners considers its reputational risk currently to be at an elevated level.

“Members of the public, whether they consider themselves part of the Church of England or not, can quickly form opinions about the Church as an institution based on what they see/hear/read in various forms of media, which understandably impacts their perception and view of the Church Commissioners.”

Referring to the Smyth case and Mr Welby’s resignation, the authors wrote: “This case and other safeguarding failures undermine public confidence in the assertions made by the Church, including the Church Commissioners, about the importance of, and priority given to, safeguarding.

“The potential reputational impacts could be far reaching; for example they may in turn make it more difficult for us to attract and retain staff.”

Slavery reparations

The same part of the report also referred to controversial slavery reparations, which were set to total £100 million over a nine-year period. It named the Fund for Healing Repair and Justice, an investment fund that will aim to raise £1 billion for members of communities affected by slavery, following criticism that the £100 million sum was not enough.

Acknowledging the reparations issue, the report read: “The highly significant and contested nature of the Church Commissioners’ work researching and responding to historical links with African chattel enslavement also attracted significant attention, comment and, in some cases, criticism.

“Further reaction (including negative comment) to this programme of work is expected when the intended new Fund for Healing, Repair and Justice is launched, making investments and issuing grants.”

Meanwhile, it was revealed that clergy would receive a pay rise of nearly 11 per cent next year as their stipends continue to catch up with salaries.

The two key measures for clergy pay, the National Minimum Stipend and the National Stipend Benchmark, will both rise by 10.7 per cent next year, to £33,350 and £34,950 respectively.

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