Latest news with #TheCharityCommission
Wales Online
22-05-2025
- Business
- Wales Online
West End's Seven Dials Playhouse to be investigated over financial concerns
West End's Seven Dials Playhouse to be investigated over financial concerns The Charity Commission has launched a statutory inquiry into the charity organisation which provides facilities for the arts, including discussions, seminars and vocational training, as well as theatre productions The Seven Dials Playhouse is located on Tower Street in Central London (Image: Google Maps ) West End theatre hub Seven Dials Playhouse is to be investigated by a charity regulator due to concerns over its long-term financial viability. The Charity Commission has launched a statutory inquiry into the charity organisation which provides facilities for the arts, including discussions, seminars and vocational training, as well as theatre productions. The inquiry will allow the commission, an independent Government department that regulates charities in England and Wales, to determine the extent of any misconduct or mismanagement and any risk to the charity. Last year, the creative hub decided to sell its central London property which prompted concerns around its finances and management. The commission has been engaging with the organisation since then and assessed its financial concerns as part of a regulatory compliance case. The regulator said it raised concerns about significant risks to the charity's funds after several revised drafts of a business plan failed to give reassurance about the theatre's long-term financial viability. Article continues below The new inquiry will investigate whether the trustees have complied with their legal duties in the administration, governance and management of the charity. The scope of the inquiry may be extended if additional regulatory issues emerge during the commission's investigation, according to the regulator. A statement from Seven Dials Playhouse said: "We are disappointed by the decision to open a statutory inquiry into Seven Dials Playhouse, particularly at such a pivotal time for the organisation. However, we fully intend to co-operate and support the Charity Commission in every way possible as they carry out their investigation. "We must also acknowledge that the existence of the inquiry itself, especially the public nature of its announcement, has the potential to cause reputational harm. Nonetheless, we will continue to do everything possible to provide transparency, clarity and co-operation throughout this process." It added that the organisation completed the sale of its building in September 2024 to "generate new revenue streams and build a sustainable future, following the collapse of the old membership and training model". In December 2024 the charity organisation said in a website post that it had "struggled" since it reopened in February 2022, "due to the ongoing ramifications of Covid-19". Article continues below It added: "Selling the lease means that the organisation can clear substantial debt associated with purchasing the lease in 1994 and other historical debt accrued as The Actors Centre (its former name)." The creative hub launched a new business plan in April. The site at 1A Tower Street is set to launch its new Pride season in June in both the venue's spaces, The House and The Pen.
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Yahoo
Prince Harry charity row to be examined by watchdog
The Charity Commission is to examine the bitter dispute that led to the Duke of Sussex and several others resigning from the charity he co-founded. The watchdog announced it had begun a "regulatory compliance case" involving Sentebale, following concerns raised by its head Sophie Chandauka. Ms Chandauka told the BBC she welcomed the move by the commission, which comes after she said she had "blown the whistle" on issues including bullying and harassment, and warned of the prince's "toxicity" for the charity. Sources close to the founders and former trustees of Sentebale have previously rejected the allegations and said they "look forward to the adjudication of the truth". Harry charity engulfed by cash fears, insiders claim Harry quits charity he set up in Diana's honour over internal row Why leaving his own charity will matter so much to Prince Harry The Charity Commission's announcement is the first step in assessing the complaints and allegations over what has happened at Sentebale, which was founded in 2006 to help children in southern Africa affected by HIV and Aids. It will then decide whether inquiries need to be escalated. An acrimonious boardroom battle led to Prince Harry, his co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho and trustees resigning from their roles after Ms Chandauka had resisted attempts to remove her as chair. Ms Chandauka previously said she had reported the trustees to the Charity Commission, and made a whistleblower complaint about issues including what she described as an abuse of power, bullying, sexism and racism. On Thursday, Ms Chandauka said in a statement that the concerns brought to the commission included "governance, administration and management matters". The Sentebale head said she hoped the public and donors would now see there was a new board of trustees "acting appropriately to demonstrate and ensure good governance and a healthy culture". Insiders have claimed personality clashes and tensions around leadership had added to Sentebale's challenges - and the watchdog is likely to hear financial concerns from some of those formerly involved with running the charity. "It is devastating that the relationship between the charity's trustees and the chair of the board broke down beyond repair, creating an untenable situation," those trustees leaving the charity said a statement. Among the likely claims are that £500,000 of Sentebale's money was spent on consultants in a strategy to get donations from wealthy individuals and foundations in the US, but which sources close to the former trustees say had not delivered adequate results. The financial fears come despite the charity receiving an extra £1.2m from Prince Harry's earnings from his best-selling memoir Spare. A Sentebale spokeswoman rejected the claim that £500,000 had been spent on US consultants - and defended its approach to seeking new funds for the charity. Sources also claim Ms Chandauka had raised funding to cover the cost of the consultants and that her own family had become significant donors to the charity. Sentebale told the BBC it had hired a US firm called Lebec to help build a new fundraising strategy, and that by October 2024 a team of six consultants had set up 65 key relationships with potential donors, who might help Sentebale in the future. It said the 12-month deal with Lebec, a women-led strategy firm, had successfully delivered links to "high-net-worth individuals, family offices, corporations, foundations and partner non-profits". "Lebec provided the positioning strategy, the tools, and the insights to enter the US market successfully and with credibility," a spokeswoman for Sentebale said. The one-off donation from Prince Harry from his Spare book was "incredibly useful" but did not represent a long-term "funding pipeline", said Sentebale. The dispute has become increasingly personal. Ms Chandauka argued the controversy around Prince Harry leaving the UK had become a barrier to potential donors. She said the "toxicity" of Prince Harry's brand was the "number one risk for this organisation". Ms Chandauka also spoke about a dispute over a video at a fundraising polo match, where it had been claimed Meghan was manoeuvring her out of the way during a prize-giving ceremony. "Prince Harry asked me to issue some sort of a statement in support of the duchess and I said I wouldn't," said Ms Chandauka. Sources close to Prince Harry and Meghan have rejected suggestions there was any conflict or anything negative about how the prize line-up was organised, saying it had been misrepresented. They say the full video with sound shows Meghan politely helping the group get ready for the photo by asking: "Do you want to come over here?". Ms Chandauka says she and her leadership team are focusing on the day-to-day operations of the charity, and looking forward to working with their supporters as "we recalibrate for an ambitious future".
Sky News
06-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Sky News
Naomi Campbell says 'shocking facts unearthed' as she fights charity trustee ban - with claim fake email impersonated her
British supermodel Naomi Campbell claims to have uncovered "shocking" facts as she fights against her ban on being a charity trustee - including that an email address was used to impersonate her in conversations with lawyers. The 54-year-old was one of three people disqualified from being a trustee of Fashion For Relief - a charity she founded in 2005 to help raise money for humanitarian causes - last year. Her removal came as a result of a probe carried out by the Charity Commission that found just a small proportion of the charity's money went to actual good causes. The misconduct included the use of charity funds to pay for Campbell 's stay at a five-star hotel in Cannes, France, as well as spa treatments, room service and cigarettes. Fashion For Relief was dissolved and removed from the register of charities last year. Trustees said at the time that hotel costs were typically covered by a donor to the charity, therefore not costing the charity itself, but failed to provide any evidence to support this. Campbell said she was "extremely concerned" by the regulator's findings, adding that she was "not in control" having "put the control in the hands of a lawyer". 'I have fought to uncover the facts' Her case is now due before a tribunal, after Campbell's representatives claim documents that were submitted to the commission gave a false impression of her involvement in running the UK charity. The model also submitted evidence of a fake email account, which she said was used to impersonate her in communications with lawyers. She said she was therefore not made aware of the allegations being made in the Charity Commission's inquiry and did not have the opportunity to answer them. "I am grateful to the tribunal for allowing me to appeal the Charity Commission's findings after considering the evidence I have submitted," Campbell said in a statement. "Ever since the commission's report, I have fought to uncover the facts. What has been unearthed so far is shocking. "I want to shine a light on how easy it is to fake identities online and prevent anybody else going through what I have been through. "I want to ensure that those responsible are held accountable and justice is done." The model also said that she will have more to say in due course, adding: "I have never undertaken philanthropic work for personal gain, nor will I ever do so." She also posted a statement on her Instagram page, in which she said the personal toll of the case has been "immense". Charity Commission's findings on where money was going The Charity Commission said back in September it had recovered £344,000 and a further £98,000 of charitable funds had been protected. The regulator's inquiry found that, between April 2016 and July 2022, just 8.5% of the charity's overall expenditure was on charitable grants. It also found no evidence that trustees took action to ensure fundraising methods were in the charity's best interests, or that the money it spent was reasonably relative to the income it generated.
