Archdiocese of Liverpool becomes a Charitable Incorporated Organisation

On 1 January 2023 the Archdiocese of Liverpool became a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) in only the second such restructure since the 1850s. A trust was created in the 1960s, whereby a group of priests together with the Archbishop were to own all the property of the church in the archdiocese. The archdiocesan trust is a charity and is subject to UK charity law and must operate within that as well as canon (Church) law. However, that trust is ultimately a group of individual people. Recently the archdiocese has included in amongst the trustees lay trustees, to support the Archbishop and priests in the operation of the trust with their skills and experience from different professions such as accounting, surveying, safeguarding and education. This reflects best practice for any large charity.

Following a review of current operations, the trustees took the decision to move from a trust model to become a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, or a 'CIO'. A CIO is a charity version of a company, established and regulated by the Charity Commission.

Archbishop Malcolm McMahon OP said: "the trust model agreed on in 1963 is no longer the best fit, and many other dioceses and religious orders are going through similar reviews. Our aim is to make the operations of the archdiocese fit for purpose for our mission in the contemporary world, and to secure its future for those who are called to carry out its mission in subsequent generations."

The CIO is called 'Archdiocese of Liverpool' and has a new charity number, different from the current trust. All the assets and liabilities of the current trust will be transferred over to the CIO. The trustees of the CIO will be the same as those for the current trust. Governance and operational procedures will all be transferred over and trust staff will move over to be employed by the CIO. Any money intended to be received by the old trust, such as any donations, will automatically belong to the CIO.

The official details of the CIO are available on the Charity Commission website at: Charity overview, ARCHDIOCESE OF LIVERPOOL - 1199714, Register of Charities - The Charity Commission