The fallout over the return to work of the Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney, the Rt Revd Anne Dyer, meant that this week’s meeting of the Scottish Episcopal Church’s General Synod had been “assailed by words even before we gathered”, members were told on Thursday, the Church Times reports. Later on Friday, a lay member…

Scotland’s first female bishop – who has been accused of bullying – has begun a phased return to work. The Scottish Episcopal Church’s Bishop of Aberdeen and Orkney, the Right Reverend Anne Dyer, was suspended in 2022 and was due to face a disciplinary tribunal after three complaints were made against her. However, following a…

The Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney, the Rt Revd Anne Dyer, said on Friday that some of her episcopal colleagues had chosen to “threaten” her in an “unprofessional and un-Christian manner” by asking her to resign. “For the avoidance of doubt, there is no prospect that I will allow them to pressure me into quitting…

Four of the six diocesan bishops of the Scottish Episcopal Church, including the Primus, have urged the Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney, the Rt Revd Anne Dyer, to consider whether she is the right person to lead the diocese, in light of the response to her reinstatement. On Thursday afternoon, the Primus, the Most Revd…

Members of the Scottish Episcopal Church are threatening to leave while others have vowed to remove it from their wills after bullying complaints against its first female bishop were dropped. Some claimed the decision by its independent procurator that it was not in the public interest to pursue a tribunal has made a ‘mockery’ of the…

Disciplinary proceedings against the Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney, the Rt Revd Anne Dyer, have been dropped, even though the Scottish Episcopal Church’s Procurator said that there had been a “realistic prospect of conviction”. In a “note of reasons”, published on Tuesday evening, the Procurator, Paul Reid KC, wrote that proceeding with the prosecution was not…

During the Canon 54 process enacted following complaints made against the Rt Rev Anne Dyer, Bishop of Aberdeen and Orkney, the independent Procurator to the Scottish Episcopal Church has kept under continuous review his decision of May this year to take charges to the Clergy Disciplinary Tribunal. Having maintained that review throughout discussions with involved…

The Clergy Discipline Tribunal hearing into allegations against Bishop Anne Dyer, scheduled for September 2024, has been postponed following an application on behalf of the Bishop for further preparation time. The request was granted by the Tribunal. The hearing was scheduled to begin on 10 September 2024 in Edinburgh, and work is now underway to…

The disciplinary process concerning the Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney, the Rt Revd Anne Dyer, is expected to cost the Scottish Episcopal Church (SEC) more than £500,000, The Sunday Times has reported. Accounts published in advance of this week’s meeting of the Church’s General Synod show that £325,000 was spent last year on legal and other fees related to…

The cost of investigating complaints of bullying and financial impropriety made against Scotland’s first woman bishop is on track to reach more than £500,000. The Right Rev Anne Dyer was suspended as the Anglican bishop of Aberdeen and Orkney in 2022, a year after priests and church staff came forward to claim that she was…

In November 2023, the Preliminary Proceedings Committee (PPC) of the Scottish Episcopal Church referred to the Church’s Procurator a number of complaints lodged under Canon 54 against the Rt Rev Anne Dyer, Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney. The complaints had been referred to the Procurator for further consideration following investigation by the PPC. The Procurator,…

A new Procurator has been appointed by the Scottish Episcopal Church, with immediate effect. Paul Reid KC takes on the position following the resignation of his predecessor Alan McLean KC. In November last year, the Preliminary Proceedings Committee of the Scottish Episcopal Church concluded its investigation into complaints lodged under Canon 54 regarding Bishop Anne Dyer….

The Scottish Episcopal Church’s procurator, or senior legal officer, has been tasked with investigating complaints of bullying and misconduct lodged against the church’s first woman bishop, the Rt. Rev. Anne Dyer.

The College of Bishops has appointed Bishop Dorsey McConnell to take over from Bishop John Armes as Acting Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney. The appointment of Bishop Dorsey is to provide cover for the Diocese of Aberdeen and Orkney during Bishop Anne Dyer’s continuing absence and her return to work at any point will bring…

The General Synod of the Scottish Episcopal Church opened on Thursday on a sombre note, as the Primus, the Most Revd Mark Strange, read out a pastoral statement about the continued suspension of the Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney, the Rt Revd Anne Dyer.

The bishops of the Scottish Episcopal Church have rejected – on a split vote – an appeal by the Rt Rev Anne Dyer against her suspension as Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney following the lodging of formal complaints of misconduct.

The meeting of the Episcopal Synod scheduled for today has been postponed. The meeting, which was arranged to consider the appeal by the Rt Rev Anne Dyer against her suspension as Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney, has been rescheduled for Monday 19 September.

The Episcopal Synod of the Scottish Episcopal Church met in Edinburgh yesterday to consider procedure relating to the appeal by the Rt Rev Anne Dyer against her suspension as Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney. • Read more on this topic Earlier this month, Bishop Dyer was suspended by the Primus following the lodging of formal…

Canonical process confirmed in Diocese of Aberdeen & Orkney + Bishop’s suspension is lifted after appeal lodged

The College of Bishops of the Scottish Episcopal Church has today issued the following statement in the Diocese of Aberdeen & Orkney: The College of Bishops has received an update from the Mediation Steering Group which was set up to help the Diocese of Aberdeen and Orkney move forward from its current difficulties. We are…

Following the meeting of the Episcopal Synod on 30 September, the Mediation Steering Group appointed by the bishops has now taken the first steps towards setting up a mediation process for the Diocese of Aberdeen and Orkney. The Steering Group, comprising David Strang CBE, the Rev Liz Crumlish and Morag Hendry, have appointed the University…

The Episcopal Synod, comprising all seven diocesan bishops, met online this morning to consider the setting up of an independent mediation process to help the Diocese of Aberdeen and Orkney move forward from its current difficulties. • Read more on this topic The Synod voted to meet in private and then unanimously agreed to set…