In his final weeks as the Bishop of Wollongong, the region’s Catholic leader Peter Ingham has offered an apology to all who suffered abuse from within the diocese.

His comments this week come after a former Catholic school principal was jailed late last year for indecent assault against children in one of the diocese’s schools.

Former Marist Brother and principal at an Eagle Vale Catholic primary school, Philip Slattery, was convicted in the NSW District Court on December 18 after pleading guilty to four counts of indecent assault against persons under the age of 16 years.

“It is my understanding that the offences were committed between 1989 and 1992 against two students whilst Mr Slattery, then known as Brother Philip, was the principal of the school,” Bishop Ingham said in a statement this week.

“I offer my sincere apology to the victims and survivors of these crimes and to their family and friends.

“They have shown great courage and resilience in speaking the truth and seeking justice.”

He said the diocese has contacted the victims, who were in support of the church publicly providing a statement about the crimes.

“I wish to assure all that the Diocese, including Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong and our Catholic schools, are totally committed to the protection of children and young people above all else, and in remaining transparent and open in our communications to ensure that the safety of children and young people remains paramount,” Bishop Ingham said.

He urged people with complaints or mistreatment or abuse to continue to come forward to police and the diocese.

Since his appointment, Bishop Ingham has had to confront the diocese’s systemic problems regarding child sexual abuse many times.

Last year, the Royal Commission found more than one in nine Catholic priests in Wollongong were alleged to be child molesters between 1950 and 2010. This makes the diocese one of the five areas in Australia with the highest proportion of priests alleged to be perpetrators.

Taking over from now Archbishop Phillip Wilson in 2001 – who is facing charges of covering up child sex abuse in the Hunter – Bishop Ingham became head of the diocese in the aftermath of one of its most public child sexual abuse complaints.

Three years earlier, defrocked priest John Gerard Nestor was convicted of aggravated indecent assault of a 15-year-old altar boy. He was then acquitted seven months later.

However, further complaints about his behaviour towards boys at summer holiday camps prompted the diocese to pursue his dismissal all the way to the Vatican.

In 2014, the bishop spoke at a Royal Commission hearing into Mr Nestor’s case, expressing his frustration at the time it took (until 2009) for the priest to be removed from the ministry.

In the hearing findings, Bishop Ingham was censured for keeping Mr Nestor’s dismissal a secret from the public for many years.