C of E’s John Sentamu admits lack of support for victim but denies he made personal mistakes

The archbishop of York has admitted the Church of England’s treatment of a vicar who was raped as a teenager by another cleric was “shabby and shambolic” but denied he had made personal mistakes in the case.

John Sentamu told the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse that more support should have been given by the church to the Rev Matthew Ineson when he told of his abuse. The archbishop accepted an earlier description by the bishop of Bath and Wells that Ineson’s treatment was “shabby and shambolic”.

Sentamu said he had received a copy of a letter sent by Ineson to the bishop of Sheffield disclosing his abuse, but assumed his colleague would deal with it. The archbishop sent a brief response to Ineson, saying he would pray for him and sending best wishes.

Asked if he had made personal mistakes in his response to Ineson, Sentamu said: “Hand on heart, I don’t think so. Where there have been disclosures, I have been willing to apologise to the person, trying to do the best I can to support them.”

Earlier, Ineson claimed Sentamu and other bishops had failed to act on his disclosures, and that no action was taken by Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury, when he made formal complaints.

Ineson, who has waived his right to anonymity, told the inquiry that he met Sentamu at a meeting for survivors of clerical abuse at a C of E meeting last year.

Ineson said: “He came over to me, he came really in my face, too close, he grabbed me by the shoulder, and he held me by the shoulder and said, ‘One day, me and you will talk’.”

Ineson said he asked the archbishop for an apology for his failure to act on his disclosures, but said Sentamu replied: “Apologies mean different things to different people.”

Ineson told the inquiry: “He’s arrogant, he’s rude and he’s a bully.”

When asked by the counsel to the inquiry about Ineson’s description of the encounter, Sentamu said if he had behaved in that way it would have been “totally inappropriate”.

Ineson told the inquiry he had been raped at the age of 16 by Trevor Devamanikkam, who took his own life on the day he was due to appear in court accused of the assault.

Ineson disclosed the abuse to the Right Rev Peter Burrows, bishop of Doncaster, the Right Rev Steven Croft, who at the time was bishop of Sheffield, and Martyn Snow, the then archdeacon of Rotherham, between 2012 and 2013 but nothing came of his reports.

He said: “I could not believe it. I could not believe they were doing nothing.”

Ineson went on to make two written disclosures to Croft, who is now bishop of Oxford, copying his letter to Sentamu and the Right Rev Glyn Webster, bishop of Beverley.

The C of E hierarchy could not be trusted to investigate safeguarding issues and investigate complaints, Ineson told the inquiry.

“Bishops sit on thrones. They live in fine palaces and houses, they wear the finest robes and garments, they bully people. People literally kneel down and kiss the ring on their finger.

He added: “I cannot see the face of Jesus in the archbishop of Canterbury or York. I see hypocrites and I see Pharisees. I see the people that Jesus stood up against. I’m sorry to be so direct, I’m a Yorkshireman. I don’t think those people are fit for office.”

Safeguarding complaints should be investigated by an independent body and clerical sexual abuse should be the subject of mandatory reporting, Ineson said.

“I have no desire to damage the church at all or bring the church down. The overriding motive for me is to help prevent abuse from happening again.”

Welby is due to give evidence to the inquiry on Thursday.