Christ Church dean exonerated after safeguarding allegations
By Imogen Duke, Cherwell:
The Dean of Christ Church has been exonerated by the Church of England after investigation into claims that he mishandled sexual assault allegations at the college.
In March, allegations were made that the dean, Martyn Percy, had not fulfilled his safeguarding responsibilities in handling four separate disclosures made by survivors of sexual assault. These claims were brought by the college to the Church of England, as an independent QC advised that this fell under the Church’s jurisdiction.
The investigation conducted by the National Safeguarding Team (NST) of the Church concludes that the Dean “acted entirely appropriately” in each case.
Martyn Percy has tweeted: “Thank you to everyone for their support and prayers. It is good to have a line firmly drawn under this.”
Christ Church states that they will “be reviewing the NST’s findings with regard to Christ Church’s safeguarding responsibilities.”
This investigation report comes amid an ongoing dispute at Christ Church over Percy’s position. The dean was suspended in 2018, reportedly after conflict over pay, and he was reinstated after an internal tribunal in August last year. The Charity Commission ordered the two sides of the dispute to enter into a mediation process in June after academics called again for the dean to be dismissed.
The Guardian reports that Percy’s supporters label Christ Church’s referral of allegations to the NST as part of a ‘black ops campaign’ to discredit him.
Related Posts
Tags
Share This
