I’m outraged Church of England leader called my abuser a ‘Rolls Royce’ priest
2025-01-18
Category: news

A woman who says she was sexually abused as a child by a priest says it is "absolutely outrageous" her alleged abuser was later praised by the man now leading the Church of England.Kate – not her real name - was reacting to evidence suggesting Stephen Cottrell, now Archbishop of York, "frequently" held up David Tudor as "an exemplar of parish ministry".The BBC also understands that at a service in 2018, Mr Cottrell referred to Tudor as a "Rolls Royce priest" even though he knew the priest had paid a large sum to an alleged abuse victim and was banned by the Church from being alone with children.In response, Mr Cottrell says he "regrets any upset or distress caused by previous comments."
Following a recent BBC investigation, Mr Cottrell acknowledged he knew of serious concerns about Tudor in 2010 when he became Bishop of Chelmsford but said he could not legally remove him and described an "awful situation" he "lived with every day".Tudor was banned for life from the Church of England in October after he admitted historical sex abuse allegations relating to two girls.  He has not responded to the BBC's request for comment.
'I was told to rot in hell'
Kate contacted the BBC last month after hearing our investigation into the same disgraced priest who she says abused her.She was a pupil at the Surrey school where David Tudor was chaplain in the 1980s, which is when she says the sexual abuse took place. She says it happened around 10 times and included oral sex.
In 1988 Tudor went on trial for indecently assaulting Kate from the age of 15. The priest denied the allegations but admitted he had sex with her when she was 16.During that trial, then Bishop of Croydon Wilfred Wood appeared as a character witness for Tudor, describing him as having "the utmost integrity", according to press reports. David Tudor was acquitted."Not a single member of the church offered to help or support me" says Kate.  "Nobody asked how I was. In fact, quite the opposite."She has copies of hate mail she and her family received from Church members, telling them to "rot in hell" and says it led to them having to move to a different part of the country.
But a month after the trial, Tudor was back in court and this time was convicted of indecently assaulting three other schoolgirls and jailed for six months.No-one told any of the girls, or Kate, that although he served his full sentence, the convictions were later quashed on technical grounds because the judge misdirected the jury.An internal Church tribunal then banned Tudor from being a priest for sexual misconduct, partly because of his admission of sex with Kate when she was 16.Kate was not informed of the process and was never invited by the Church to give her own account of events.  Nevertheless she spent more than 30 years thinking Tudor had been punished by the Church."I thought right, job done. He is never going to work for the Church again, because that man should not be anywhere near young people. That's how I left the story and went on with the rest of my life."
'Like talking to a stone wall'
It was not until an internet search in July 2023 she learned Tudor was once again a priest, now in the Chelmsford diocese.  It was news she found profoundly upsetting and she started to seek answers as to how he was back in ministry."I cannot tell you how re-traumatizing it has been since July 2023 trying to get answers from them," she says, adding that she felt it was "like talking to a stone wall".She says the Church "weren't really very forthcoming", but when she learned Stephen Cottrell was Bishop of Chelmsford from 2010 she contacted him hoping he could shed light on the matter. Mr Cottrell twice refused requests to meet.Kate was told it was inappropriate "because of on-going proceedings". This is thought to refer to a Church misconduct case into David Tudor that lasted into late 2024. But Kate says it "felt like he didn't believe me."Kate then contacted David Greenwood, a solicitor specialising in abuse cases, who advised her to make a formal complaint of misconduct under the Church's disciplinary system.
Last February Kate filed three complaints: against Mr Cottrell, David Tudor and Wilfred Wood, the bishop who had been a character witness for Tudor in his trial.Soon afterwards the Church told her there would be a tribunal hearing into her complaint against David Tudor.  Within the submissions sent to her in response was a letter from Tudor's wife, Sandra.It says "when Archbishop Stephen Cottrell was Bishop of Chelmsford, he would frequently hold the parish of Canvey Island up as an exemplar of church growth and parish ministry."The archbishop's office says that as this matter is subject to an ongoing disciplinary process, it would not be appropriate to comment.Sandra Tudor did not respond to the BBC's questions.Because of what the Church describes as "a serious administrative error", Kate only received acknowledgement of her two other complaints (against Stephen Cottrell and Wilfred Wood) on the very day in December on which the BBC ran its investigation.Many of her questions were then answered, but only because of the BBC report.
Kate learned that in 1989 Tudor was only banned for five years. He was allowed back by then Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey who quit his service as a Church of England priest after the BBC investigation revealing his role.She had also been unaware that under Stephen Cottrell, Tudor was twice reappointed to a senior role and had also been made honorary canon of Chelmsford Cathedral.Mr Cottrell is now Archbishop of York and currently de facto leader of the Church, after the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby stepped down over his handling of another abuse case.Mr Cottrell has insisted he did everything he could to manage the risks posed by David Tudor and suspended him as soon as he was legally able to.That suspension started in 2019 when a new police investigation was opened into Tudor, who was by then an honorary canon of Chelmsford Cathedral and an area dean.In a personal statement last month, Mr Cottrell said the situation he faced was "horrible and intolerable".His office also told the BBC "it was an invidious situation that Stephen Cottrell lived with every day that he was Bishop of Chelmsford until he was able to take action."
'Rolls Royce priest'
But others from Canvey Island have told the BBC they saw evidence Stephen Cottrell was publicly supportive of the priest, several years after we now know he knew of Tudor's abusive past.One man, who does not want to be named, says in January 2018 he was one of around 60 people at a confirmation service at St Nicholas Church on Canvey Island at which Mr Cottrell spoke alongside Tudor."As Bishop of Chelmsford he was invited to preside over the service and was full of praise for David Tudor, including saying that we're very lucky to have David Tudor as our priest, because he was a 'Rolls Royce priest', and he stands out far above many others," he says."Many of us were taken aback by what Stephen Cottrell had said and (it) has always stuck in my mind, especially nowadays, with what's going on."The BBC has independently received similar testimony about the service from a second individual.When asked about having used the words "Rolls Royce priest" to describe David Tudor at the 2018 service, Mr Cottrell's office responded by saying "the archbishop deeply regrets any upset or distress caused by previous comments, including when they were unrelated to David Tudor's personal conduct."
'Terrible decisions'
Kate is appalled by the remarks attributed to Mr Cottrell. She thinks he should not be the "figurehead of the Church" and must be held accountable for his "terrible decisions".Similarly, she wants former Bishop of Croydon, Wilfred Wood to face sanction.Last year, she received a letter from Bishop of Southwark Christopher Chessun saying he regretted Bishop Wood had given a character witness during the 1988 trial.Mr Wood acknowledged to the BBC that he gave evidence in the trial involving Kate, but said he did not recall the second trial involving 3 other girls. "I doubt if I would have given such a glowing reference had I known this to be the case," he said.Mr Cottrell says he is "appalled by David Tudor's abuse and the life long suffering it has caused his victims.""I have always expressed a willingness to meet with survivors and continue to do so. I am profoundly grateful to all survivors and victims who have come forward to share their experiences from the 1980s in relation to David Tudor," Mr Cottrell says."The abuse by David Tudor was an appalling breach of trust, we recognise the courage of those who have come forward and are truly sorry for the devastating effect on their lives," said a Church of England spokesperson.Meanwhile Kate is still searching for answers and wants the Church to show more humility."Even though I have spent the last 40 years doing quite a good job of forgetting it, the way the Church have handled this case and the way they have treated me… has caused me to have to remember it all again," she says.