'She Recalls Sex With Defendant Twice': Bishop Accused of Raping 15-Year-Old Girl Sent to Old Bailey

Bishop David Oakley, the Bishop of Northampton, has been sent to the Old Bailey after appearing at Westminster magistrates' court on Thursday accused of raping a 15-year-old girl on two occasions in the early 2000s. Oakley, 70, has not entered pleas and the allegations have not been proven in court.

For context, the charges follow an investigation by Staffordshire Police's rape and serious sexual offences team into what the Catholic Diocese of Northampton has described as 'non-recent safeguarding allegations'. Prosecutors allege the incidents began after Oakley and the girl had travelled on a pilgrimage to Lourdes in south-west France.

David Oakley Faces Two Rape Charges

Oakley appeared before the court by video link from his solicitor's office after being charged in June with two counts of rape of a girl under 16.

The alleged offences are said to have taken place when Oakley was working as a Catholic priest and was in his mid-40s. The complainant was 15 at the time, according to the prosecution.

Sarah Madden, prosecuting, told Westminster magistrates' court that the alleged incidents began 'after going on a pilgrimage to Lourdes'.

'She recalls sex with the defendant on at least two occasions,' Madden said.

That brief description was the central allegation placed before the court. The case is now set to move to the Central Criminal Court, better known as the Old Bailey, where serious criminal cases are heard.

There was no detailed examination of the evidence at Thursday's hearing, and Oakley was not required to indicate how he would plead.

Judge Paul Goldspring, the Chief Magistrate, said the case should be transferred because of both its profile and Oakley's former professional role.

'Given the profile of the case and the former employment of the defendant, this ought to go to the Central Criminal Court,' the judge said.

Oakley was granted bail on the condition that he does not contact the alleged victim or her family. A plea hearing is scheduled for 10 September.

David Oakley Withdrawn From Ministry

The news came after Oakley was withdrawn from public ministry following his arrest by police in September last year. He has remained Bishop of Northampton, but has not been carrying out his public ministerial duties while the criminal process continues.

Oakley was born in Stourbridge in the West Midlands and was ordained a priest in 1980. He became Bishop of Northampton in 2020, taking on a prominent role in the English Catholic Church after decades in the priesthood.

His appearance in court puts the alleged conduct, rather than the later senior position he held, at the centre of the proceedings. The accusations relate to events said to have occurred many years before he became a bishop. That distinction matters legally, though the fact that the defendant is a serving bishop gives the case an obvious public dimension.

Lourdes, the French pilgrimage site referred to in court, is among the best-known destinations in Roman Catholic life, drawing visitors to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes. It is precisely that religious setting which gives the prosecution's account an especially difficult edge. But a charge is not a verdict, and the court will have to test the evidence properly rather than let the status of either the place or the defendant decide the story.

In a statement issued after the charges were announced, the Catholic Diocese of Northampton said Oakley had been charged after an investigation into 'non-recent safeguarding allegations'.

The diocese added: 'We understand that this will be very distressing for all concerned but cannot comment further on an active legal process.'

That is likely to remain the public position while the prosecution is ongoing. The safeguarding implications are serious, clearly, but the legal question is narrower and unresolved. Did the alleged acts take place, and can they be proved beyond reasonable doubt?

For now, the next formal stage is the Old Bailey plea hearing. Oakley remains on bail, subject to the conditions imposed by the court, as a case involving allegations from the early 2000s moves into a far more consequential phase.