Inquiry established into Lambeth Conference finances

Following reports of a £1.2m shortfall in the funding of this year’s Lambeth Conference, the Church of England’s Archbishops’ Council and Church Commissioners have set up a review, under the independent chairmanship of John Ormerod, a former senior partner of Deloitte, to examine the financial management of the Lambeth Conference.

The team has also been asked to make recommendations regarding the future involvement of the Council and the Board of the Church Commissioners in assisting the financing of meetings of the Lambeth Conference. A spokesman for the Church of England told the Gazette: "The inquiry is due to report back to the Council and the Board early in 2009 with a preliminary report on the financial difficulties and how these arose. A final report, examining the way forward, will be produced in summer 2009. The Council and Board have indicated that the inquiry’s report should be published." The membership of the inquiry will be: John Ormerod; the Rt Revd Tim Stevens, Bishop of Leicester, and Christina Baxter (both Archbishops’ Council); and Timothy Walker, Third Church Estates Commissioner.

Last August, the Board and the Council met to discuss an approach from the Lambeth Conference Company - the body with responsibility for the finances and administration of the Lambeth Conference 2008 - for financial help.

The Company had assured the Board and the Council that it was making approaches throughout the Anglican Communion to meet the full cost of this year’s Conference. However, it was not confident that these would generate funds sufficiently quickly for it to meet all of its obligations as they fell due.

The Board of Governors of the Church Commissioners and the Archbishops’ Council agreed in August to make available to the Company up to £600,000 each as required to enable the Company to honour its commitments while fundraising efforts continued. Read more
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