Bishops in the Diocese of Norwich have expressed being "deeply troubled by the safeguarding concerns and allegations of cover-up within the Church of England raised in recent weeks."

In a statement, the Bishop of Norwich, Rt Rev Graham Usher, alongside his suffragan bishops of Thetford and Lynn, acknowledged "gaps" in the Church’s safeguarding processes and emphasised the need for greater accountability.

This statement comes as the Bishop of Liverpool resigned earlier this week following allegations of sexual assault and harassment, which he denies.

The group also recognised the progress made in recent years and looks forward to further improvements being discussed at Synod in a couple of weeks.

They said: "There remain questions about whether appropriate action has been taken. Rightly, those making decisions that impact on others need to be accountable. It is also clear that our processes have gaps and weaknesses, which is why we welcome the fact that the General Synod in February will be debating the independent management and oversight of the delivery and scrutiny of safeguarding, the governance of the national church, and a new process for complaints about clergy conduct."

It continued: "The Diocese of Norwich, as with the rest of the Church of England, has come a long way with safeguarding over the last ten years, including each diocese having a professional safeguarding team, an independent chair of its safeguarding board, detailed safeguarding training for all involved in ministry, and parish safeguarding officers. We are very grateful to all who diligently support this work in this diocese.

"The emergence of new allegations nationally understandably breaks trust and has a negative impact locally, where so much good is already happening in proclaiming the Gospel through the worship of God and service to others. Every negative story impacts this and retraumatises many of those with lived experience of abuse."

The statement concluded by urging people in the diocese to contact the safeguarding team if they have any concerns.