The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Tasmania has announced a $780,000 deficit in their latest 14-month report, tabled at its annual general meeting in Campbell Town on Saturday.
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The 140-year-old organisation began trading as a company limited by guarantee 14 months ago as part of its extensive efforts to restructure in the face of declining returns.
RSPCA Tasmania chief executive Peter West said the board was “quite concerned” about the deficit but not particularly surprised, due to money spent to develop a sustainable business model for the future.
A 2013 parliamentary inquiry by the Public Accounts Committee into the RSPCA found serious issues with the charity’s structural integrity, particularly pointing to its reliance on bequests to sustain operations.
In 2011-2012 the organisation reported a loss from operations of $1.75 million.
Mr West said RSPCA Tasmania is presently structured to rely on $1 million of bequests each year as the backbone of its financials. In the past two years the RSPCA has only received about $700,000 per year, triggering the “disappointing” deficit.
“We will have to change the way we operate, we’ve gone part of the way there,” he said.
“The good news is the first three months of this year compared to the first three months of last year ... are up $300,000 on last year’s figures so there is an improvement in what we’re doing.”
He said a primary focus was on changing the organisation’s structure away from reliance on bequests to become a more up-to-date charity with a better understanding of how the public expects them to operate.
RSPCA Tasmania president Alexandra Garrott said the board’s focus was on creating a sustainable organisation for the next 140 years that was back in balance.
She said the challenge “was not a new one” as many old-style charities have been fighting to find a better operating system against greater competition from new charities.
“The review and planning process, led by the board and supported by staff, has shown that doing nothing is not an option,” she said.
Mr West said investing in new programs such as community outreach and a full-time veterinarian based in Launceston had been of great benefit to restore RSPCA Tasmania’s reputation.
He said despite the deficit, positive changes over the past year included a 77 per cent live release rate for animals reclaimed or rehomed from RSPCA shelters in Tasmania, which increased to upwards of 90 per cent if feral cats were removed from the equation.
Mr West said the organisation’s primary focus would always remain on caring for Tasmania’s animals in need and upholding animal welfare laws.
