UNITED KINGDOM
Sussex Express
Huw Oxburgh
huw.oxburgh@jpress.co.uk
Friday 29 July 2016
Victims and alleged victims of the former Bishop of Lewes will give evidence to the Goddard inquiry into child sexual abuse despite initially being turned away.
In all six complainants – either allegedly abused or established to have been abused by disgraced bishop Peter Ball – will be allowed to give evidence after being named as ‘core participants’ in the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), also known as the Goddard inquiry.
They were provisionally denied this status as they were over 18-years-old at the time of the offences and alleged offences, falling outside of the inquiry’s initial remit. This decision was later reversed and confirmed at a preliminary hearing of the inquiry on Wednesday (July 27).
Set-up in 2015 in the wake of the Jimmy Saville case, the Goddard inquiry aims to investigate the extent to which UK institutions have failed to protect children. Chaired by Dame Lowell Goddard it is looking at a number of institutions including the Anglican Church.
Following the preliminary hearing, Graham Tilby the Church’s national safeguarding adviser said: “We welcome today’s (July 27) update on the investigation into the Anglican Church in England and Wales and the acknowledgement from the Inquiry that the material already submitted is relevant and useful. We note that the Inquiry has received a substantial amount of material from us and other core participants and the analysis of this is now underway as is the process of identifying possible witnesses.
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