Charities unable to pay staff after fraud alert

Charities unable to pay staff after fraud alertImage source, PA MediaImage caption, Many good causes have been left feeling powerless as payday looms ByNathan BevanSouth East Published55 minutes agoCharities across the South East are worried they will not be able to pay staff and suppliers after being cut off from their online bank accounts.CAF Bank, which is based in West Malling in Kent and serves more than 14,000 non-profit causes UK-wide, said its online services had been suspended since 24 July following reports of suspected cyber fraud.As a result, the ability of some charities to manage essential operations like payroll has been impacted, such as Maidstone-based 21 Together, which helps people with Down's syndrome.Its chief executive Kevan Hodges, who has a 13-strong team of education specialists and part-time staff, described the situation as "appalling"."People are concerned that wages won't get paid because of this, and that's just stressful when they have bills to pay," he said."My team have wasted days trying to get through to (CAF Bank), but all in vain."He added that when they finally did get hold of someone at the bank, which is owned by the Charities Aid Foundation, they were told to fill out an online form which "would be looked at tomorrow".Others have also voiced their frustrations, such as Bali Rodgers, who is chief executive of Safer Communities Alliance.Image caption, Bali Rodgers, who works with lots of grassroots charities, said the situation had made her angry "It's just not good enough," she said. "Many of the grassroots organisations I represent - churches, YMCAs, vets - have CAF as their bank, but they are slowly losing trust in it."Rodgers added that she had received "no reassurance" about the current situation from the bank, while any information had been "very inconsistent". "It's especially sad that this has happened in the su...