Welby resigned in November after an independent review revealed he did not act decisively on reports about John Smyth, the most prolific serial abuser linked to the denomination.
Reflecting on his time in office, the 68-year-old explained to Laura Kuenssberg that the growing volume of cases made it difficult to manage. "Every day, more cases were coming across the desk… it was just another case," he said. "It was overwhelming… but the reality is I got it wrong. As Archbishop, there are no excuses."
One of Smyth’s victims, Graham, who reported the abuse in 2013, criticised Welby for not addressing the issue sooner. "No one should be too busy to deal with a safeguarding disclosure," he told the BBC. "The Archbishop has never answered why there weren’t huge red flags when told about horrific abuse."
The Makin Review, led by safeguarding expert Keith Makin, found that Smyth’s abuse of over 100 victims was covered up within the Church for decades.
Smyth, a barrister and Christian charity leader, abused boys in the 1970s and 80s, and by 2013, the Church, including Welby, was aware of his actions.
The review concluded that Welby should have reported the case to authorities, which could have led to Smyth facing justice earlier.
Smyth died in 2018 without ever being held accountable. The review found Welby lacked sufficient curiosity about the allegations when presented with them in 2013 and suggested it was unlikely he had not known before then, though Welby denies any prior knowledge.
Though he initially resisted calls to step down, Welby later took responsibility for his failure to act, stating he resigned "in sorrow with all victims and survivors of abuse".
In the interview, Welby also reflected on the pressures faced by public figures, saying that society often has a "rush to judgement" and expects perfection. "If you want perfect leaders, you won’t have any leaders," he remarked.