Catholic bishop ‘raped girl, 15, after Lourdes pilgrimage.’
David Oakley, 70, appears in court accused of offences against teenager in early 2000s
Updated 13 August 2026 8:20pm BST
The Rt Rev David Oakley, the Bishop of Northampton, appeared at court via video link Credit: OSV/Diocese of Northampton
The Bishop of Northampton has appeared in court over allegations that he raped a teenage girl after they went on a pilgrimage to Lourdes.
The Rt Rev David Oakley, 70, is accused of twice having sex with the girl, who was 15 at the time, in the early 2000s when he was in his mid-40s and working as a Catholic priest.
The bishop was charged in June with two counts of rape of a girl under the age of 16, following an investigation by Staffordshire Police’s rape and serious sexual offences team.
He appeared at Westminster magistrates’ court on Thursday via video link from his lawyer’s office to face the charges for the first time.
Sarah Madden, prosecuting, told the court that the incidents involving the girl began “after going on a pilgrimage to Lourdes”.
“She recalls sex with the defendant on at least two occasions,” Ms Madden said.
Lourdes, in south-west France, attracts throngs of pilgrims to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes every year.
Withdrawn from ministry
Bishop Oakley was born in Stourbridge in the West Midlands and ordained as a priest in 1980.
He became Bishop of Northampton in 2020 and is currently withdrawn from public ministry, having been arrested by police in September last year.
During the court hearing, he was not asked to enter pleas as Judge Paul Goldspring, the Chief Magistrate, sent the case to the Old Bailey.
“Given the profile of the case and the former employment of the defendant, this ought to go to the Central Criminal Court,” said the judge.
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