Sixty former members of the Jesus Army have come forward with new allegations of sexual and domestic abuse. 

The lawyer representing members of the Jesus Army said the number of survivors coming forward with abuse allegations was “way beyond what I expected”. 

The group, founded in 1969 by Baptist pastor Noel Stanton, is accused of widespread abuse, The Guardian reported. 

Claims also include unpaid labour by women who served as “domestic sisters” in the cult, which had several thousand members at its peak in the mid-2000s. 

Kathleen Hallisey is a solicitor with Scott-Moncrieff & Associates, who have prepared 24 civil claims against the Jesus Fellowship Community Trust (JFCT), which had been responsible for winding up the group’s assets after its closure in 2019. She said: “The number of new cases is way beyond what I expected in terms of more people coming forward.” 

One former member, Sarah, who spoke in the BBC documentary Inside the Cult of the Jesus Army, said taking part had helped her overcome feelings of “guilt” and “indoctrination”. 

An estimated £25m of the Jesus Army’s assets remained. The high court had set a deadline of 11.59pm today for claims against the JFCT, after which funds would be distributed, with £2.85m reserved for future costs. 

The Jesus Fellowship Survivors Association said it was “deeply concerned” that some of the remaining funds could be distributed to alleged perpetrators of abuse and urged anyone with a potential claim to seek legal advice.