Archdeacon resigns over inappropriate relationship

Archdeacon Paul Thomas was required to resign following a "brief, consensual but inappropriate relationship with a woman"

An archdeacon has resigned and been banned from ministry for three years after admitting an "inappropriate relationship".

The Venerable Paul Thomas, archdeacon of Salop since 2011, stepped back from duties last September while a complaint was investigated.

The Bishop of Lichfield confirmed it pertained to “a brief, consensual but inappropriate relationship with a woman during 2022 and early 2023".

"I am deeply grieved that Paul's long service in ministry in this diocese... has been marred in this way," Bishop Michael Ipgrave added.

The relationship occurred while Archdeacon Thomas was experiencing "post-Covid depression and spiritual exhaustion", the bishop said.

A complaint made under the Church of England's Clergy Discipline Measure was overseen by the Bishop of Shrewsbury, the Right Reverend Sarah Bullock.

"In the Diocese of Lichfield, we expect the highest standards of personal and professional conduct from our clergy," Bishop Ipgrave said.

"The penalty that has been imposed on Paul, and to which he has consented, is resignation as Archdeacon of Salop and a prohibition from ministry for three years."

It was confirmed he would not return to ministry as Archdeacon of Salop, one of four archdeaconries in Lichfield diocese.

Reverend prebendary Jo Farnworth and the Reverend Mary Thomas are serving as acting archdeacons in the district.