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d’s General Synod, the church’s parliament. As part of her duties, she would be able to help set the direction for Church policy across a wide range of issues.
After their careers had intersected once again, Jay filed a formal complaint against Venessa to the Church of England. The process was triggered and an investigation was launched – but things took another unexpected turn.
During the investigation, Jay felt he was treated unfairly. The investigator warned Jay not to communicate outside the complaint process. She then contacted him over messages he’d sent her, leading Jay to believe she was trying to get rid of him.
In March 2022, Venessa resigned from her position after a Telegraph report in February revealed she had been arrested on suspicion of malicious communication on social media related to Jay’s case. However, Jay did not know about this until months later, when Venessa was already out of the church.
Finally, a month later, Jay received the outcome of the investigation – it concluded he was not a victim of any stalking or harassment. It was a devastating blow for Jay.
“I’ve been gaslighted plenty of times across the course of this investigation and before that. And I wasn’t even surprised, which seems very sad to me,” he says.
The way in which the Church of England handled Jay and Venessa’s case has raised questions about how the Church responds to complaints of abusive behaviour.
Current clergy and victims of abuse are calling for change.
Robert Halford, a former police officer and a safeguarding consultant who served at the Church of England for 14 years, says many victims have come forward to him with similar stories to Jay’s.
“I became aware of a culture where complainants do not trust the process,” Halford says. “The person complaining feels excluded from that process, and their voice is either not heard, or not heard sufficiently. In some cases, their character has been attacked or maligned.”
The Church of England acknowledges its procedures need to be more consistent and supportive. A spokesperson said they are committed to improvements and that they continue to work towards that. They also say they undertake all procedures with the utmost seriousness.
As for Jay, he plans to continue his fight for justice. Despite being disenchanted with the Church, he still desires to become a priest to help reform its safeguarding policies.
“I want to be the person in the system who is going to fight to make sure that people like me can never be treated like this again,” Jay says
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
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