LONDON — LONDON (AP) — Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welbyspiritual leader of the global Anglican Communion, will end his official duties in early January amid an abuse scandal in the Church of England, his office said on Wednesday.

Welby resigned last week after an investigation found he failed to tell police about physical and sexual abuse by a Christian summer camp volunteer as soon as he became aware of it. His refusal to accept responsibility for not reporting the abuses in England and Africa in 2013 sparked anger at a lack of accountability at the highest levels of the church. Although he admitted the mistake, his position became untenable.

His office at Lambeth Palace said he intends to complete his official duties by January 6, the Epiphany. Stephen Cottrell, the Archbishop of York and the second-highest bishop in the Church of England, will take over until a permanent replacement is chosen – a process that will take months.

“Following the announcement last week of his resignation as Archbishop of Canterbury, Archbishop Justin intends to complete his official duties at the coming Epiphany,” Lambeth Palace said in a statement. “Archbishop Justin intends very little public activity between now and the Epiphany, but plans to fulfill a small number of remaining commitments.”

The Archbishop of Canterbury is the symbolic head of the Anglican Communion, which has more than 85 million members in 165 countries. While each national church has its own leaders, the Archbishop of Canterbury is considered first among equals.

Welby, a former oil executive who left the industry in 1989 to study for the priesthood, was a controversial figure even before the scandal. He fought to unite the Anglican Communion, which has been divided by sharply divergent views on issues such as gay rights and the place of women in the church.

The Church of England earlier this month released the results of an independent investigation into the late John Smyth, a prominent barrister who, according to the report, sexually, psychologically and physically abused around 30 boys and young men in Britain and 85 in Africa from the 1970s. until his death in 2018.

The 251 page report from Makin Review concluded that Welby failed to report Smyth to the authorities when informed of the abuse. Had he done so, Smyth could have been stopped earlier, the investigation found.