The Bishop of Northampton has appeared in court accused of two counts of rape against a female under the age of 16.

David Oakley, 70, was charged in June following a police investigation.

The alleged incidents are said to have taken place in Staffordshire between February 2000 and February 2001, when he was working as a Catholic priest.

Oakley appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court by videolink from his solicitor's office.

He was not asked to enter a plea. Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring sent the case to the Old Bailey, with a plea hearing scheduled for 10 September.

Oakley was released on bail with conditions not to contact the alleged victim or her family.

He was ordained as a priest in 1980 and became Bishop of Northampton in 2020.

He retains the title of bishop but has withdrawn from public ministry.

The Diocese of Northampton said in a previous statement that the case was "very distressing for all concerned".