C of E covered up attack by serial drug addict John Smyth, finds review | Anglicanism

The Church of England covered up the actions of its worst and most brutal serial abuser, who subjected his victims to traumatic physical, sexual, psychological and spiritual attacks, a independent review has entered into.

John Smyth QC, a powerful and charismatic barrister, sadistically abused private school boys who attended evangelical Christian holiday camps in the late 1970s and early 80s. When the abuse was discovered, Smyth was allowed to move abroad in the full knowledge of the church, where he continued to act with impunity.

Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, volunteered at the holiday camps in the 1970s but has denied any knowledge of concerns about Smyth. But the report said this was “unlikely”.

It adds: “(Welby) may not have known of the extreme seriousness of the abuse, but it is highly likely that he would have had at least a level of knowledge that John Smyth was concerned … It is not possible to determine whether Welby knew about the seriousness of the abuses in Britain before 2013.”

In 2013, a victim reported historical abuse by Smyth to the C of E. Senior figures in the church, including Welby, were made aware of the allegations.

In a personal statement, Welby said he had “no idea or suspicion of this abuse before 2013. Nevertheless, the review is clear that I personally failed to ensure that the horrific tragedy was vigorously investigated after it was revealed in 2013.”

He apologized “not only for my own errors and omissions, but for the malice, concealment and abuse of the church more widely, as detailed in the report”.

The review, led by Keith Makin and commissioned in 2019, said: “John Smyth was a horrific abuser of children and young men. His abuse was prolific, brutal and appalling. His victims were subjected to traumatic physical, sexual, psychological and spiritual attacks. The impact of that abuse is impossible to overstate and has permanently marked the lives of his victims.”

Smyth, who died in 2018, was chairman of the Iwerne Trust, which funded the Christian camps. A secret review carried out by the trust in 1982 described “terrible” beatings by teenage boys, mostly carried out in the garden shed at Smyth’s home.

One of his victims was Andrew Watson, now the Bishop of Guildford, who said he was subjected to a “violent, excruciating and shocking” beating and that one of his friends had tried to kill himself before an alleged beat.

The recipients of the 1982 review “engaged in an active cover-up to prevent the report and its findings – including crimes that had been committed – from coming to light”, said the Makin report released on Thursday.

Winchester college, one of Britain’s leading private schools, whose students were among the alleged victims, was informed of the allegations, but neither the college nor the trust reported Smyth to the police. Instead, the headmaster told Smyth never to enter the college or contact its students again.

Smyth moved to Zimbabwe where in 1992 he was accused of killing a 16-year-old boy who was found dead in a swimming pool at a holiday camp in 1992. The case was dismissed and he later moved to Cape Town.

As of July 2013, the Church of England at the highest level knew about the abuse that took place in the late 1970s and early 1980s. John Smyth should have been properly and effectively reported to the police in the UK and to relevant authorities in South Africa,” the report said.

It identified several “thematic concerns”, including abuse of positions of trust and power, excessive deference to senior clergy, failure of leadership and a cover-up over an extended period.

Makin said: “Many of the victims who took the brave decision to speak to us about what they experienced have endured this abuse in silence for more than 40 years.

“Despite the efforts of some individuals to bring the abuse to the attention of the authorities, the responses from the Church of England and others were completely ineffective and amounted to a cover-up.

“This has been a long process, but a necessary one to uncover the extent of John Smyth’s despicable behavior and how the church responded to it.”

Welby said: “The pain experienced by the victims in this case is unimaginable. They have lived with the trauma of Smyth’s horrific abuse for more than 40 years.”

In a statement, Joanne Grenfell, the C of E’s senior protecting bishop, and Alexander Kubeyinje, its director of national security, said: “We are deeply saddened by the horrific abuse suffered by the late John Smyth and its lifelong effects, which already span more than 40 year.

“The audit concludes that Smyth is arguably the most prolific serial abuser associated with the C of E. We know that no words can undo the damage done to people’s lives, both by him and by the failure of individuals in the church and others institutions to respond well.

“We highlight the comment in the review from a late clergyman (David Fletcher) who in the 1980s, along with others, was aware of the scale of the abuse: ‘I thought it would do the work of God enormous damage if this was public. . ‘

“We are appalled that any pastor could believe that covering up abuse was justified in the name of the gospel … there is never a place for covering up abuse.”