Welsh Lib Dem leader committed ‘grave error of judgement’ in handling of sex abuse case

Martin Shipton

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Jane Dodds committed a “grave error of judgement” while working as a senior manager in the Church of England when she failed for months to arrange a crucial meeting involving the sexual abuse of a young man by a Bishop, according to an official report.

The report – Betrayal of Trust – followed an inquiry led by retired judge David Pearl into historic and prolific sex abuse carried out by Hubert Victor Whitsey, a former Bishop of Chester.

In her capacity as Senior Casework Manager for the Church of England’s National Safeguarding Team (NST) in 2016, Ms Dodds had been asked to organise a core team meeting to discuss the case of a victim of Whitsey’s referred to in the report as M2. She didn’t do so, and the matter didn’t progress until someone else took over her responsibilities.

Although the report was published in 2021, a number of Welsh Liberal Democrats who are antagonistic towards Ms Dodds have only just become aware of it.

Critical

They have drawn Nation.Cymru’s attention to it and have made comments to us that are seriously critical of their leader.

The report states that M2 told the police that in 1978, he was recommended for training for ordination, and he went to join a religious community in the north of England. After six months there, the community asked him to stay on for another year.

He was about 29 at that time. However, he decided to postpone further time at the community, and took on temporary employment prior to, he expected, undergoing ordination training as from September 1981.

He was asked to attend a review for this training in February or March 1981, and, after phoning the Bishop’s house to ask for a meeting, he went to see Bishop Whitsey in his office in the Bishop’s House in Chester on March 23 1981.

M2 told the police that he had a discussion with the Bishop around whether he (M2) felt ordination was right. M2 told the police also that Whitsey asked him about his sexual orientation. M2 told him that he was ambivalent about his sexuality.

General knowledge

The report states: “We have no doubt that Whitsey asked this question to M2. Interestingly, in our interview with the current Bishop’s Chaplain (Canon Roger Clarke) on April 5 2020, who had himself been ordained by Whitsey, he told us that in his pre-ordination meetings with Whitsey he was asked about his sexual orientation.

He told us that it was general knowledge amongst ordinands that Whitsey would ask this question.

“M2 went on to say to the police as follows: ‘At the close of that meeting, it was in his study, I was just alone with him, he stopped by the door and he embraced me, his hands wandered over my clothing, I think above the waist and I think over the outside of my clothing, and he stuck his tongue down my throat.’ After 10 seconds or so, M2 pushed him off.”

Whitsey invited M2 to a further meeting, but he decided there was no way he would do so. The assault had a lasting traumatic impact on M2.

In the event M2 was turned down for ordination, but he became a lay reader in the Church.

He made disclosures about the incident to a number of clerics, but nothing of substance took place.

Sex abuser

In early 2016, publicity about another Bishop who was a sex abuser brought everything he had suffered at the hands of Whitsey back to him and he told a further cleric what had happened. The cleric advised him to raise the matter with the Chester Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser (DSA), which he did.

The DSA then referred the matter on to Ms Dodds, whose responsibility it was to take the case forward.

The report goes on to describe in detail the six-months delay in progressing the case because of Ms Dodds’ inaction.

It states: “[The] Chester DSA had been continuously chasing by emails and phone calls for an NST core group to be held in relation to another allegation made against Whitsey. That one wasn’t held, was a grave error of judgement on the part of the Senior Casework Manager at the time at the NST [Jane Dodds].

The report says: “There was also a further email exchange between the Chester DSA and Jane Dodds on February 1 2016 agreeing that they would meet on February 2 2016 to discuss the way forward. We have seen no evidence that this meeting took place. There is certainly no reference to the meeting in any of the files we have looked at.

“There is an email from the Chester DSA to M2 dated February 16 2016 advising him that she is awaiting a date from Jane Dodds when she would be able to meet with her. “There is an exchange of emails on February 17 2016 between the Chester DSA and Jane Dodds setting the date for the meeting for March 8 2016. There are then a series of emails dated February 24 2016 from the Chester DSA to Jane Dodds advising her that she (the Chester DSA) had been trying to move the case forward since January 12 2016, and referring to the meeting between them which had been arranged for March 8 2016.

“As with the meeting which had been arranged for February 2 2016, we have found no evidence that the meeting between the Chester DSA and Jane Dodds which had been agreed to take place on March 8 2016 was ever held.

“Attempts were made to obtain Whitsey’s files, unsuccessfully. On April 22 2016, M2 sent an email to the Chester DSA requesting an update. The Chester DSA replied to say that they were struggling to locate records relating to Whitsey. On June 9 2016, the Chester DSA emailed Jane Dodds requesting that Jane Dodds liaise directly with M2, because he had not received any feedback. It is clear that the Chester DSA was becoming increasingly frustrated at the inaction and poor response of the NST and having to deal with the anxiety of M2 with the length of time this was taking. Jane Dodds replied to say that a core group should meet prior to her having contact with M2.

“As we have seen, the NST were informed about M2’s disclosures on January 22 2016. Bishop Peter Forster was asked by when he gave evidence to the Inquiry whether he could ‘help us to understand why there was any delay between the disclosure in January and the formation of the core group in June 2016. Bishop Peter Forster replied to say that he had no idea, but that he would have expected a preliminary core group to be formed, and the police to be informed also.

“The delay was clearly of major concern to M2. He told us that he thought things would be moving but they weren’t. We have every sympathy for M2, who, after making the disclosure at the beginning of 2016, had to wait for some eight months prior to his interview with the police. He had already formed a view of a major cover up by the Church due to the many previous disclosures he had made with no action having been taken, and the delay must have strengthened this view.

“The failure to hold a core group meeting cannot be laid at the hands of the DSA in Chester. She was constant in her attempts to bring these matters before the NST core group.

“Sadly, and regardless of any resource issue (namely, only one person dealing with complex case work), we are drawn to the inevitable conclusion that the leadership at that time at the NST failed to follow the practice guidance to hold a core group meeting with respect to the allegations brought by M2 within as short a delay as possible. We … must conclude, albeit regrettably, that M2 was sadly let down by the National Safeguarding Team during this seven-month period in 2016 in addition to having been let down by the Church for many years previously.

“In her reply to the representation letter, Jane Dodds stated that she cannot recall the case, given that it was over four years ago. She acknowledged, however, on reading the relevant paragraphs in the draft report, that there were clear shortcomings in her practice in responding to the DSA in Chester with regard to the case.”

‘Incompetent’

A Welsh Liberal Democrat source told Nation.Cymru: “When you read this report, it appears as if Jane is being somewhat insipid, evasive, incompetent and perhaps even presenting a casual duplicity as a ‘senior casework manager’ in the Church of England. Something similar, unfortunately, to her dismal record as the Welsh party’s leader over recent years. This simply cannot continue without consigning the party to oblivion.”

Another Welsh Lib Dem source said: “Jane needs to come clear with members why her own CV seems to be devoid of mentioning her involvement with the Church of England on safeguarding issues. It gives the appearance of something to hide.”

A third party source told us: “Jane arrived in Wales about a decade ago with few people knowing her background and a CV she had selected and few were able to question. I’m now very worried about what was left out.”

Ms Dodds’ work for the Church of England does not appear in her biographical details published on the Senedd’s website. In terms of her professional background it states: “Jane was a Child Protection Social Worker for 27 years, working to protect vulnerable children at home and abroad, before returning to Wales in 2012.”

All-member ballot

She was first elected as leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats in November 2017 in an all-member ballot.

Ms Dodds served briefly as MP for Brecon and Radnorshire in 2019, winning it at a by-election before losing it to the Conservatives in that year’s general election.

She was elected as a regional MS for Mid and West Wales in 2021 and is the only Lib Dem in the Senedd.

One of the party sources who spoke to us claimed that people in Welsh Labour were aware of the report in which she was criticised, but hadn’t used the information because the Welsh Government needs her vote to get its Budget for 2025-26 passed by the Senedd.

‘Appalling’

Ms Dodds said: “My heart goes out to the victims of this appalling abuse. As detailed in this report I worked closely with the authorities on this historic case, but I accept that there were shortcomings at that time.

“I have had a long history of working in child protection for over twenty years prior to entering politics, which is why I have dedicated my position in the Senedd to making sure that care and child protection services across Wales are safer and fairer”.

A note issued by the party said: “For a brief time in her career in child protection, Jane Dodds worked for the Church of England for a year from 2015.

“Jane’s role was to work as part of a central team advising and supporting case managers throughout the country.

“During Jane’s 25-year long career in child protection, she worked on many cases and as highlighted in the report, she cannot recall the exact case mentioned.”