Bishop of Lincoln arrested
The Bishop of Lincoln, Stephen Conway (pictured), has been suspended from ministry, following a complaint of sexual assault.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dame Sarah Mullally, formally removed Lincoln’s top clergyman from ministry on Friday following the House of Bishops’ Code of Practice after the complaint was made to the Church of England’s National Safeguarding Team.
The Church’s response to the complaint includes reporting the matter to statutory authorities and Lincolnshire Police has confirmed it arrested a 68-year-old man -widely reported to be Stephen Conway – on February 19, following an allegation a man was sexually assaulted between 2018 and 2025. He was released on conditional bail while investigations continue.
Conway was appointed as Bishop of Lincoln in 2023 after serving as acting bishop since 2021 while also the Bishop of Ely.
A statement from the Diocese of Lincoln announced that the Bishop of Grantham The Rt Rev Dr Nicholas Chamberlain will take over the post’s responsibilities until matters are resolved.
“Support is in place for those affected and there will be no further comment while the process is ongoing.
“We understand that this will be a deeply unsettling time. The Diocesan Safeguarding Team is available for anyone who wishes to contact them. They can be contacted via email:
The Bishop of Grantham and the Bishop of Grimsby, the Rt Revd Jean Burgess, released a pastoral letter to the diocese on Sunday, the first of Lent, reported by Church Times.
“We both wish to assure you of our commitment to you over the next weeks and months, as your bishops. We cannot say any more about the circumstances of Bishop Stephen’s suspension, but we are able to say that he is being pastorally supported.
“We are committed to the pastoral care and support of victims and complainants when safeguarding allegations are brought forward. Such support is being given by the National Safeguarding Team in connection with the allegation against Bishop Stephen.
“It is the first Sunday of Lent. These forty days are days for reflection, fasting, penitence and service. During Lent it is the Christian’s faith that we will be restored, ultimately through the sacrificial grace that is found in the events of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Day. There is always hope.
“Lent can be a hard time, during which we are tested, and it seems that for God’s people in the Diocese of Lincoln this year that will indeed be the case. But, together, as we love and serve, we believe that God will not abandon us. Indeed, it is perhaps in the most difficult of times that we will most assuredly find His mercy and His strength.”