Justin Welby turned to therapy after resignation over John Smyth failings

Justin Welby, the previous Archbishop of Canterbury has spoken about how therapy has helped him take care of the failures that ultimately led to his resignation as head of the Anglican Communion.

Welby stood down as Archbishop in November 2024 following the publication of the Makin report into the Church of England’s handling of abuse allegations against the late John Smyth. Smyth died in 2018 and is believed to be answerable for abuse going back many years in each Britain and Africa.

The Makin report said that Welby had not done enough once he became aware of the allegations. Following the review Welby conceded that he had “personally didn’t ensure … [that] the awful tragedy was energetically investigated”.

However, Welby has also contested a few of Makin’s findings, telling the Cambridge Union that subsequent evidence confirmed that the allegations against Smyth had in truth been reported to the authorities and that the police had told the Church not to analyze further as doing so could harm their enquiries.

Now, talking to broadcaster Gyles Brandreth on the Rosebud Podcast, Welby has spoken of the assistance he has received because the “loneliest” moment of his resignation.

“I’ve been seeing a psychotherapist for a substantial time frame. And a psychiatrist. Very helpful. It’s not about saying, ‘oh, it didn’t matter’, or anything like that, quite the reverse – how does one live with such a failure?”

Welby also reiterated his views on the Makin report, again conceding that the claim he had not done enough to prioritise victims was “absolutely correct”, but taking issue with other points.

“The initial perception was that we’d not reported it to the police – in truth, it had been reported to the police,” he said. 

Keith Makin, writer of the Makin report, has stood by his work. According to the Telegraph, he said, “My report makes it clear that the matter was communicated to the police but that Bishop Welby didn’t pursue it beyond being assured by the Ely diocese that the police were investigating.

“My report makes the purpose that Bishop Welby knew of John Smyth and it must have been the case that he should take more interest than a straightforward assurance. I concluded that Bishop Welby carried a private and an ethical responsibility to be certain that he pursued the matter.”