Please note: This article contains references to abuse.
Several victims of the late John Smyth are suing the Church of England, a year after the seismic Makin Report into his abuse of at least 115 children and young men over five decades. Some of them later attempted suicide.
The claimants are seeking compensation, a full apology and a full independent review. They allege that senior clergy and church officers orchestrated a cover-up that enabled Smyth to continue abusing boys for decades.
The claimants are six Zimbabwean men who were abused as teens at Christian camps run by Smyth in Zimbabwe; and the mother of Guide Nyachuru, a 16-year-old who died in 1992 while at one of Smyth’s camps.
One of the claimants, Rocky Leanders said: “The memory of the shame and humiliation I suffered to satisfy John Smyth has never left me. After the Makin Report was published I expected some redress. But none came.”
The victims’ law firm Leigh Day says the claim traces a direct line from the church’s failure to act between 1982 and 1984 to the boys being abused in Zimbabwe.
The letter of claim has been sent to St Andrew the Great church (STAG), Cambridge. An internal investigation into Smyth’s abuse in 1982 was led by former STAG vicar the late Mark Ruston who, the claim alleges, deliberately concealed the abuse.
The Makin Report itself found “clear evidence that the abuse perpetrated by John Smyth in the UK was ‘covered up’, minimised and held as ‘secret’ from at least 1982 (and possibly earlier)”.
A spokesperson for STAG said: “We are full of sorrow about the horrendous abuse carried out by John Smyth which has had lifelong effects on survivors, both here and in Africa, and that he was not stopped sooner.
“While we are unable to comment on the specifics of this claim, we take the safety and wellbeing of our congregation, staff and volunteers extremely seriously and follow Church of England’s Safeguarding Policy and Practice Guidance designed to protect vulnerable people.
“If anyone has been affected by this issue and wants to talk to someone independently, please call the Safe Spaces helpline on 0300 303 1056 or visit safespacesenglandandwales.org.uk. Further support is also available via contacts on our safeguarding webpage.”
Further help and support
If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this story, help is available via: FearFree Support (fearfree.org.uk); the Safe Spaces helpline on 0300 303 1056 / safespacesenglandandwales.org.uk; The Samaritans helpline – 116 123; The National Association for People Abused in Childhood napac.org.uk.
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