The Church of England is facing further demands for resignation over a ‘disgraceful’ failure to help child abuse victims today after the dramatic departure of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Justin Welby fell on his sword yesterday after a damning report revealed how the church’s biggest abuser was able to evade justice.

But clamor for more people to take responsibility is growing, with survivors warning that Mr Welby should not be a ‘sacrificial lamb’ and that other senior clerics involved in the scandal should also resign.

Cabinet minister Wes Streeting, himself an Anglican, said this morning that Mr Welby had made ‘absolutely the right decision’.

But he warned the Church against thinking that ‘a nod of the head will solve the problem’.

Mr Streeting told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, emphasizing that he was speaking personally and not as a vicar, that he felt ‘a deep sense of shame about the failings of the Church of England’.

‘This happens over and over again,’ he said.

Justin Welby fell on his sword yesterday after a damning report revealed how the church’s biggest abuser managed to evade justice

Cabinet Minister Wes Streeting, himself an Anglican, said this morning that Mr Welby had made ‘absolutely the right decision’.

John Smyth (pictured) is believed to be the most prolific serial abuser associated with the Church of England

‘So it is right that the Archbishop of Canterbury takes responsibility for his own failures and the general failures of the church.

‘What I would say to other leaders of my church – and I speak as an Anglican, not as a Government minister – is don’t think that one nod will solve the problem.

‘There are deep and fundamental problems with conservation that need to be taken seriously, not only in practice but also in culture.’

Mr Streeting praised the Bishop of Newcastle, Helen-Ann Hartley, who called on Mr Welby to resign, saying she “had the courage to speak out because the conspiracy of silence is part of the problem”.

‘A culture of cover-up has been part of the problem with serious allegations of abuse for far too long, and I’m glad the Archbishop of Canterbury has taken responsibility,’ he said.

Meanwhile, a bishop and the church’s conservation leader said others may also have to resign.

Julie Conalty, Bishop of Birkenhead and deputy archbishop for security, said: ‘What I am really clear about is that the resignation of the Archbishop of Canterbury will not solve the problem. I think he did the right thing.

‘This is about institutional changes, our culture and systemic failure, so there must be more we need to do.

‘Others should probably go too. ‘I’m not here to name names.’

However, the second most senior figure in the Church said he no longer thought there was a need for bishops to resign.

Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell said: ‘Those who actively covered this up (should resign), and they were not bishops.

‘We need to remember that when people talk about the Church of England we are talking about literally thousands of branches, congregations, presbyteries.’

Asked if more bishops would resign, he said: ‘The Archbishop of Canterbury has resigned.’

Mr Cottrell added: ‘Yes (that’s enough) because he resigned due to institutional failings.’

Mr Welby yesterday took the unprecedented step of asking the King for permission to resign ‘in the interests of the Church’.

Her resignation followed days of pressure from senior clergy and came after Keir Starmer twice failed to give her full support, saying victims had failed her “very, very badly”.

Downing Street has refused to say whether Mr Welby will receive the lifetime rank traditionally given to former Archbishops of Canterbury; one source added that it was ‘not automatic’.

His resignation follows a long-awaited review last week concluding that barrister John Smyth’s ‘disgusting’ serial abuse of more than 100 boys and young men was covered up within the Church.

The Makin review also criticized the Archbishop for showing a ‘marked lack of curiosity’ after learning of Smyth’s abuse in 2013; This meant the abuser was never brought to justice before his death in 2018.

In a statement from Lambeth Palace, Mr Welby admitted it was clear he needed to ‘take personal and corporate responsibility’.

‘Having received the gracious permission of His Majesty the King, I have decided to resign as Archbishop of Canterbury,’ he said.

‘Makin Review has exposed the long-running conspiracy of silence regarding John Smyth’s disgusting abuses.

‘When I was briefed in 2013 and told that the police had been notified, I wrongly believed that an appropriate decision would be made. ‘It is clear that I must take personal and institutional responsibility for the long and retraumatizing period between 2013 and 2024.’

It will likely be some time before a successor is announced. The statement stated that Archbishop Welby will continue to fulfill his ‘constitutional and Church responsibilities’ until the exact dates for the handover are confirmed.

Mr Welby added: ‘The last few days have renewed my long-held and profound sense of shame at the historic preservation failures of the Church of England. I have been trying to make improvements for about 12 years. ‘It is for others to judge what is done.’

He added: ‘I believe it is in the interests of the Church of England, which I love and have the honor to serve, to step aside.

‘I pray that this decision will lead us to the love that Jesus Christ has for each of us.’

Survivors of Smyth’s abuse welcomed Mr Welby’s resignation and said he “did the right thing”. However, they said they would like to see further resignations as the list of clergy in ‘awareness circles’ was surprising.

There were calls for the resignation of the Bishop of Lincoln, the Rev. Stephen Conway, who was involved in the scandal while he was Bishop of Ely.

Former vicar and author Mark Stibbe said: ‘We asked the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Bishop of Ely and other senior figures at the CofE, who we knew knew about the abuses in 2013, to do the right thing, and Justin Welby did the right thing.’

He told Channel 4 News: ‘So I applaud Welby for resigning but I think the survivor group will be asking for more resignations because it means more responsibility, people taking responsibility for being silent when they should be speaking up.’

Another survivor, who reported Smyth’s abuse to the Bishop of Lincoln in 2013, also called for him to step aside last night.

At yesterday’s COP29 summit, Keir Starmer said the findings of Keith Makin’s review that Smyth had abused more than 100 boys and young men were ‘clearly appalling’ and that his victims had ‘clearly failed very, very badly’.

“He was the man who was in a position to stop John Smyth, to bring him to justice and he basically failed,” he told the BBC, adding: “I don’t care about his prayers, I want him to resign.”

Bishop Conway apologized following the review and said: ‘I understand that there are further actions I can take following my report into the statements made to us in the Diocese of Ely about John Smyth.’

The law requires the Archbishop of Canterbury to retire at the age of 70, meaning Mr Welby, 68, will have almost two more years until his successor is appointed.

It is more common for Archbishops to die in office than to resign, as Thomas Becket was assassinated and Thomas Cranmer was executed. Randall Davidson was the first to retire, in 1928.

When Rowan Williams, Lord Williams of Oystermouth, resigned in 2012 at the age of 62, he did so to take up the post of master of Magdalene College, Cambridge.