Vicars who have been suspended over sexual abuse are making thousands of pounds by illegally conducting funerals, Church of England officials have warned.

Funeral directors are employing vicars who are no longer permitted to minister to speed up the process of arranging services.

Families will often not be aware that the vicar presiding over their loved one’s funeral has been suspended due to sexual or other misconduct. In one case, raised by the diocese of Winchester, a funeral director ignored warnings from police asking them not to employ a vicar who was being investigated for sexual abuse abroad.

At the…