Cabrini plunges deeper into the red

CATHOLIC children’s charity Cabrini is set to make a loss of nearly £1 million this year, writes Liz Dodd.

Operating in the Dioceses of Portsmouth, Arundel and Brighton, and Southwark, the charity has suffered significant losses for more than a decade, but a consultation document produced by its senior management and seen by The Tablet has revealed for the first time the depth of its current deficit.

This year’s forecast loss, of £895,000, is a significant backward step. It lost more than £1 million in 2011/12, but reduced that to £455,000 the following year.

Cabrini was due to announce the results of a consultation on a major restructure, to include a number of compulsory redundancies, on Friday. It has proposed confining its services solely to adoption and fostering.

“The charity is not viable as it stands and therefore needs to reduce its operating losses,” says the management.

Losses have been blamed on the lengthy adoption and fostering process, and the resultant lack of local authority cash. Its fund-raising income was down and a rise in employer pension contributions had a “significant impact”.

The Church will have to sever its ties with Cabrini if it restricts its activities to adoption and fund-raising because it places children with gay couples. The Dioceses of Southwark, and Arundel and Brighton, have already instructed parishes not to raise funds for, or donate any money to, the charity.