London/IBNS: Church of England head Justin Welby on Wednesday resigned after he was held responsible for not taking action against attorney John Smyth, who is accused of sexually and physically abusing 100 boys and men for over five decades, media reports said.

Smyth, who died in 2018, never faced any action over the allegations.

Welby stepped down after an investigation found he did not inform police about the accusations against Smyth.

"It is very clear that I must take personal and institutional responsibility for the long and retraumatising period between 2013 and 2024," Welby said in a statement.

He added, "I believe that stepping aside is in the best interests of the Church of England, which I dearly love and which I have been honoured to serve. I pray that this decision points us back towards the love that Jesus Christ has for every one of us."

"I hope this decision makes clear how seriously the Church of England understands the need for change and our profound commitment to creating a safer church.

"As I step down I do so in sorrow with all victims and survivors of abuse," the 68-year-old, who served as the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury since 2013, said.

The process of finding an alternative to Welby will take about six months' time.

Welby, who was facing soaring pressure to resign eversince the report of sexual abuse came to light, also spoke of "profound sense of shame at the historic safeguarding failures" of the Church.

"For nearly 12 years I have struggled to introduce improvements. It is for others to judge what has been done," he said.

The independent probe has found that Smyth sexually and physically abused boys and men at the Christian summer camps in the United Kingdom, Zimbabwe and South Africa for over five decades, CNN News 18 reported.

The report says Welby failed to inform the authorities about Smyth soon after becoming the Archbishop of Canterbury in 2013.

"Had he done so, Smyth could have been stopped sooner and many of his victims wouldn’t have been abused," the report stated.