THE Church in Wales has paid nearly £60,000 in compensation to a man who was sexually abused by a Swansea priest.

The claim was lodged by a man, who wishes to remain anonymous but is now in his mid-thirties, who was abused by the Revd Stephen Brooks more than 20 years ago.

Mr Brooks was jailed for four years for other offences against young boys in 1994, after he admitted abusing children at his home in Sketty, in Swansea.

But earlier this year, one of his victims, who told police about his ordeal but was too traumatised to give evidence during the court case, launched a civil case; this has now been settled out of court by the Church.

He has been paid £58,500 in compensation, the news agency Wales News Service reports.

The victim said: “The abuse ruined so much of my life, and I feel the Church has also let me down as it should have stepped forward to apologise when Brooks was convicted for sexually assaulting us. The abuse has definitely dented my faith.”

His lawyer, Dino Nocivelli, said that the Church was partly responsible for the abuse, as it had failed properly to supervise Mr Brooks’s interaction with children.

“This was a significant case for my client, who not only finally felt the Church had acknowledged the abuse, but had also listened and had tried to appreciate how the abuse had impacted his life.

“Survivors of child abuse should no longer have to suffer in silence, and this case proved to be very important to my client’s aim to finally obtain closure and justice.”

A spokesman for the Church said: “The Church in Wales regrets that, for reasons of confidentiality, it cannot comment on any particular legal case.

“However, we stress that we deplore all abuse of children and vulnerable adults, and we take safeguarding very seriously.

“We have robust procedures in place to deal with any allegations and have conducted a review of historic cases. Furthermore, we urge anyone with concerns to contact us either directly on 029 2034 8200 or through a member of our safeguarding team.”