Westminster: Diocesan theft exposes the cost of “lay-led” offices - nearly £100,000 missing

Francisca Yawson, a lay employee responsible for Gift Aid procedures, has been convicted of nine theft offencescommitted between 2018 and 2019: a suspended sentence and minimal repayment. The diocese says it has strengthened its controls, but the case reopens an uncomfortable question: after years of campaigns against the clergy, management entrusted to lay staff is producing opacity and networks of cover-up.