26 Tuesday December 21 2021 | the times
News
The chancellor of Oxford University
says its reputation is being damaged by
a long-running dispute between Christ
Church and its dean.
Lord Patten of Barnes, a former
cabinet minister, wrote to the college’s
65 fellows about the dispute with the
Very Rev Martyn Percy and requested
an urgent meeting to discuss its “pro-
tracted and ongoing dispute” and the
“damage it is doing to the reputation of
the collegiate university”.
The dispute began in 2018 over pay.
At an internal tribunal the following
year, a retired high court judge exoner-
Oxford fears dean dispute is damaging reputation
Andrew Billen ated Percy of “immoral, scandalous or
disgraceful conduct” but Christ Church
refused to apologise or pay his legal fees.
Percy now faces a second tribunal
over a separate issue, which his sup-
porters say is part of a vendetta against
him. The Charity Commission, which
regulates the college, has questioned
whether pursuing Percy is a justified
use of resources.
In the letter Patten and the univers-
ity’s vice-chancellor, Louise Richard-
son, write: “We appreciate that the dis-
pute is a matter for the college but you
must appreciate the deleterious impact
it is having on the rest of the university.
We would like to request, therefore,
that you invite us to attend the next
governing body meeting so we can
discuss the matter.”
Richardson, a political scientist. is
leaving at the end of next year and some
believe she is determined to sort out the
row, now well into its fourth year.
Mediation has failed, millions of
pounds have been spent on legal fees
and neither side has shown any inten-
tion of backing down.
Oxford’s 45 colleges are self-
governing, making interventions by the
chancellor unusual.
Last Friday Christ Church’s govern-
ing body approved a proposal to set up
a panel that could rule Percy psycho-logically unable to remain in charge of
the college and cathedral.
The dean’s allies plan to seek an in-
junction to prevent the medical board
being set up. The medical assessment
plan follows concern expressed earlier
by the Charity Commission over Christ
Church’s intention to hold an internal
tribunal into an allegation that Percy
stroked a woman’s hair in the sacristy of
the cathedral. The police and the
Church of England declined to pursue
the accusation. The commission ques-
tioned whether spending hundreds of
thousands of pounds on a tribunal was
a justifiable use of charitable funds.
The dispute began in 2018 whenPercy was suspended for his conduct in
a pay dispute although it may have had
its origins in earlier attempts by the
dean to modernise safeguarding proto-
cols at the college.
On Saturday the Rev Jonathan
Aitken, an ally of Percy, wrote to The
Times calling the attempt to classify
Percy mentally ill “comic and con-
temptible”. The dean was, he said, “on
sparkling form”.
Last night Christ Church said: “We
have received the letter from the chan-
cellor and vice-chancellor and wel-
come the opportunity to discuss the
situation with them. We have no fur-
ther comment to make at this time.”BUSINESS SPORT
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