‘Heartfelt and sober apology’ over behaviour of Pioneer founder Gerald Coates

The Pioneer church network has issued a “heartfelt and sober apology” after an independent review concluded that late founder Gerald Coates’ behaviour had fallen “significantly wanting expected standards on the time”.

Over 30 individuals participated within the review, led by Christian Safeguarding Services (CSS), into the conduct of Coates, who died in 2022.

The review was launched after concerns were raised about his behaviour following his death. 

It found a “consistent pattern of behaviour that falls significantly wanting expected standards on the time”, and said that non-public boundaries weren’t respected.

Accounts from some participants within the review detailed “harmful experiences” and the report said that “some individuals appear to have been harmed emotionally, psychologically and spiritually, and attribute that to their contact with [Coates] and / or [Pioneer Trust]”.

According to the report, concerns related to public prayer and prophecy over young men, most of whom were of their late teens to mid-twenties, and attempts by Coates to contact them after these public events. 

“It is vital to notice that the priority was not that [Coates] was behaving in a sexually inappropriate way, but quite that his conduct didn’t meet the standards expected on the time, that he was not respecting personal boundaries, and that his behaviour might be misunderstood as having a sexual motivation,” the report said.

Particularly “concerning” was the “intensity and duration” of the prophecy and prayer times, which it was felt was “not in keeping with expectations”, and using a “holy kiss” on the cheeck “which just isn’t common in UK culture; particularly so when interacting with someone previously unknown to a person”.

Attempts to contact the young men could be done under the guise of offering spiritual mentorship. In some cases, Coates would try and contact young men through social media that he had never met in person.

“Once contact had been established, he would start in a short time to query them about their use of pornography, masturbation etc. He would ask detailed questions on the style of pornography and about their accompanying sexual intercourse,” the report said.

“This would occur without invitation in a conversation that the young man believed related to the prophetic word that they’d previously been given.

“On some occasions, Gerald apparently approached people indicating that he might be a father figure to them and that he believed God had called him to this.”

While many of the reports concerned young adults, there have been two or “possibly three because the age of 1 is unclear” who were of their mid-teens and one who was aged 12 to 13, who it appears was contacted directly by Coates via social media.

The report said: “This behaviour would, each now and on the time that it occurred, be considered a safeguarding concern that ought to have been raised with the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO).”

It notes that in light of his death, “it’s unimaginable to evaluate motives and intentions” and that “particular care should be taken provided that [Coates’] voice couldn’t be heard”.

Concerns about Coates’ conduct were reported to Thirtyone:eight and the Pioneer Trust did act on the recommendation received, which led to Coates modifying his behaviour “to a point”.

“However, overall, the interventions weren’t as effective as would have been hoped,” the report said. 

In light of the findings, Ness Wilson, leader of Pioneer’s National Leadership Team, and Steve Clifford, Chair of the Board of Trustees, said they accepted the report and its findings, and apologised. 

“The review confirmed some things we already knew and revealed some things we didn’t know, providing a much fuller picture for us,” they said. 

“We wanted the review to assist us listen and learn. CSS heard from over 30 individuals, most of whom reported being hurt and harmed by inappropriate and damaging ministry practices through their contact with Pioneer.

“To those respondents we would like to thank them for his or her bravery in telling their stories and offer a heartfelt and sober apology. We are so sorry.

“We hope that having your story heard, believed, and validated – along with this apology and a commitment to implementing the report’s recommendations – goes a way towards a measure of healing.”

If you’ve gotten been affected by any of the problems raised in this text, Thirtyone:eight’s safeguarding helpline might be contacted 9am – 5pm, Monday – Friday on 0303 003 1111.