On Tuesday, Mr Welby said that “it is very clear that I must take personal and institutional responsibility” for his response after he was first told about the abuse.

Survivors of Church abuse have called for other senior members of the Church to face questions over the handling of the Smyth allegations.

Mark Stibbe, a former vicar and author, told Channel 4 News he thought Mr Welby had “done the right thing” and that he and fellow survivors had been calling for his resignation for years.

“I applaud Justin Welby for resigning but what I think the survivor group would like is more resignations because that means more accountability, people taking responsibility for having been silent when they should have spoken,” he said.

“If there are senior clergy who have broken the law then they need to be called to account,” he added.

Another survivor, Richard Gittins, told Sky News bishops “who kept the stories to themselves” should now be the focus of questioning.

Other bishops are named in the report into Smyth’s abuse including the serving Bishop of Lincoln Stephen Conway.

One of Smyth’s victims said Bishop Conway did not do enough when he was informed of the abuse while serving as the Bishop of Ely.

The report said Conway was in a “potentially powerful position” to ensure allegations of serious abuse were being pursued – but the allegations were “not properly investigated” despite his diocese knowing of them from early 2013.

In a statement, Bishop Conway said he was told about details of Smyth’s abuse in 2013 and made a detailed disclosure to Lambeth Palace, as well as contacting the diocese in South Africa to which Smyth had fled.

The Archbishop of York defended Bishop Conway, telling Today he “was the first person to do something about this”.

He said those who “actively covered this up” should resign but added this was not bishops and said that Mr Welby had taken responsibility for “institutional failings”.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said “it was absolutely the right decision” for Mr Welby to go and that church leaders should not “think that just one head rolling solves the problem”.

“There are deep and fundamental issues of not just practice but culture on safeguarding,” he told Today.

“The culture of cover-up has been part of the problem on serious abuse for far too long,” he added.