A REVIEW carried out by a former barrister for the Church in Wales has confirmed a choice to unfrock the previous Bishop of Swansea & Brecon Anthony Pierce after he was jailed for indecent assault (News, 14 March 2025).
Mr Pierce, who’s 85, was sentenced at Swansea Crown Court last March to 4 years and one month in prison, and was placed on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely, after admitting five counts of indecent assault on a male child below the age of 16 (News, 14 February, 2025). The offences were committed between 1985 and 1990, when he was a parish priest within the West Cross area of Swansea.
A Church in Wales press release said that the review was commissioned after it was found that senior clergy had apparently been aware of allegations when he was appointed Archdeacon of Gower in 1995 after which Bishop of Swansea & Brecon in 1999. “These allegations weren’t reported to the police until 2010. As a result, the Church appointed Gabrielle Higgins to perform a review which has now been published.”
Ms Higgins is a former diocesan secretary of Chichester.
While the review was being prepared, the Church in Wales made a referral to its disciplinary tribunal, consequently of which the Bishop of Swansea & Brecon, the Rt Revd John Lomas, deposed Mr Pierce from Holy Orders.
“This is clearly a case which demands probably the most serious of sanctions,” the review says. “We briefly considered whether disqualification from holding a position within the Church in Wales, without limitation of time was appropriate, however the gravity of the offending, the gross abuse of trust and the concealment of his subsequently acknowledged wrongdoing persuade us of the high level of concern that right minded people would justifiably feel were he to proceed to have the opportunity to carry himself out as a Bishop or Priest.
“We find that the one appropriate sanction that’s consonant with the gravity of his offending is for Mr Pierce to be deposed from Holy Orders.”
It continues: “The Church in Wales has never before found itself within the circumstance of deposing a Bishop from their Orders. Section 42 of Chapter IX of the Constitution envisages the duty falling to the Bishop of the Diocese where the cleric holds, or last held, office. It doesn’t make separate provision for Bishops, although a Bishop clearly falls throughout the Constitutional definition of a Cleric.
“However, we’re mindful that powers of deprivation of Bishops (and other disciplinary sanctions) were vested within the Metropolitan prior to disestablishment. For the avoidance of doubt and uncertainty, we consider the suitable way forward is for the Archbishop and the Diocesan Bishop jointly to execute a deed of deposition.”
Responding to the review, the Archbishop of Wales, the Most Revd Cherry Vann, said: “The welfare of the victims of sexual abuse should always be our paramount concern, and we provide our most heartfelt apologies to those that have been failed by the Church previously. I would like to thank Gabrielle Higgins for her painstaking and conscientious work on this review, which has engaged in a deep examination of complex and difficult issues dating back many many years. . .
“The review shows in painful detail the missed opportunities, the harmful assumptions and the inadequate processes which characterised the Church’s response to those allegations of abuse for a lot too long. This catalogue of failures can only be a source of shame for the Church and may have caused further trauma to abuse victims and their families. . .
“I welcome and fully accept the review’s findings and suggestions, and we’re implementing all of the changes that have to be made.”
Bishop Lomas said: “The trauma experienced by victims of abuse throughout the Church is made all the more severe by the breach of trust they’ve suffered, and, as this review has shown, by the failings of the Church as an establishment. While nothing can undo the wrongs of the past, and while we will only apologise unreservedly for the failings this review has dropped at light, we hope that this review will go a way towards showing our determination to be clear and robust in ensuring these issues can never occur again.
“It is simply through doing the precise thing that we will begin to revive confidence within the Church, and the publication of this review, and our commitment to the actions arising from it, shows that we’re resolved to try this.”
Professor Medwin Hughes, who chairs the Representative Body of the Church in Wales, said: “In commissioning this review, the Church in Wales has shown its willingness to confront its past failings and to make sure that its processes are fit for purpose for the current and the longer term.”
A spokesperson for the Church in Wales said: “The Church in Wales is decided to reveal that it’s a protected place, and that anyone coming forward may have their concerns or disclosures taken seriously, treated with compassion, and brought forward in accordance with the best current standards. If our people and processes have failed victims and survivors of abuse previously, we intend to take responsibility for that fact and to totally apply the teachings which have been learned.
“There isn’t any place for any type of abuse within the Church in Wales. We give the best priority to the care and protection of kids and vulnerable people in our communities. To this end we frequently review our safeguarding procedures and supply extensive training to staff and volunteers.”
Anyone with safeguarding concerns is inspired to contact a member of the Church in Wales safeguarding team via the Church’s website. churchinwales.org.uk
