Letter: Portia Trust not selling grief

I AM accused of 'offering to sell the stories of baby-snatchers'('Baby-snatchers go on sale for pounds 100,000', 28 August). This is a total misunderstanding and highly damaging to the Portia Trust. We offer all clients complete confidentiality and would never depart from that.

However, we badly need pounds 30,000 to run a nursing home/retreat as an alternative to imprisonment for baby-snatchers, and as a counselling and treatment centre for women who are near to an abduction. Attempts to raise donations have failed. But there are companies which will offer sponsorships in return for some reward, and this is what we sought to do.

The Portia Trust requested pounds 30,000 sponsorship from the Independent on Sunday. In return, if any resident of the retreat, of her own free will, wished to make a public explanation of how the loss of her own child had driven her towards a baby-snatch, to make apology to the mother, or to urge other potential snatchers to seek help, the newspaper would get this story without any payment, and without any inducement being offered to ourselves or to the woman concerned.

We are still making this same offer to other newspapers. We are not selling stories. We would never urge any woman to speak to a reporter.

Ken Norman

Retiring Organiser,

Portia Trust

Cumbria