Bishop of Lincoln, the Rt Rev Stephen Conway. (Photo: Church of England)
The Bishop of Lincoln, the Rt Rev Stephen Conway, has been suspended from ministry following a safeguarding complaint.
He will remain suspended while the complaint is investigated by the Church of England’s National Safeguarding Team.
It is reported that he has been arrested on suspicion of sexual assault and released on conditional bail. Lincolnshire Police confirmed a 68-year-old man had been arrested as part of an “ongoing investigation following an allegation that a man was sexually assaulted between 2018 and 2025”.
The Diocese of Lincoln said in an earlier statement that its own investigations into the complaint “includes referral to the appropriate statutory authorities”.
The Bishop of Grantham, the Rt Rev Dr Nicholas Chamberlain, will assume the functions of the diocesan bishop during his suspension.
The diocese did not divulge specific details about the complaint.
It said, “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.”
Conway has been Bishop of Lincoln since 2023.
Following his suspension, the Guardians of the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham announced that they have accepted his resignation as Visitor to the Shrine.
“Master of the Guardians, Fr Philip Barnes, acknowledged with gratitude the work Bishop Conway had done and said that the Guardians would work on choosing a successor in the near future,” they said.
Bishop Conway’s suspension comes just a week after new Archbishop of Canterbury, Dame Sarah Mullally, told the Church of England’s parliamentary body, General Synod, that she was “committed to bringing an approach of seriousness and focussed direction to all matters relating to safeguarding in all contexts in the church”.
“This approach must be trauma-informed, put victims and survivors at the heart of all we do and be committed to proper independence,” she said.
The Diocesan Safeguarding Team can be contacted via email at safeguarding@lincoln.anglican.org or by phone on 01522 504070. Alternatively, Safe Spaces has a free helpline available on 0300 303 1056, and support is also available from ThirtyOneEight by calling 0303 003 1111.
