The finances of The Captain Tom Foundation have been brought into question after a case was opened up by the Charity Commission in March 2021, shortly after Captain Tom's passing. The case has now been upgraded to a full-scale inquiry. The commission does not open up inquiries unless it has evidence of potential serious wrongdoing, and such inquiries tend to be rare.
Helen Stephenson, the chief executive of the Charity Commission, said: “We do not take any decision to open an inquiry lightly, but in this case our concerns have mounted. We consider it in the public interest to examine them through a formal investigation, which gives us access to the full range of our protective and enforcement powers.”
The Ingram-Moore family have denied any allegations of wrongdoing, with Hannah, daughter of Sir Captain Tom Moore, telling ITV’s This Morning earlier this year that they had been “naive” in their actions. Part of the case by the Charity Commission surrounds potential copyright violations on the part of the family, with a separate company having trademarked variations of “Captain Tom” which could have resulted in a serious loss of revenue on behalf of the foundations.
Read more: Charity Commission launches inquiry into Captain Tom Foundation
The copyrights were taken out by Club Nook Ltd, owned by Hannah and her husband Colin, with both also serving as trustees for the foundation at various points (Colin remains a trustee). Hannah has previously served as chief executive of the charity, with the organisation previously running foul of the Charity Commission over its requests to pay the businesswoman £60,000 a year for three days work.
This request was then changed to £100,000 for a full-time role, with the commission also rejecting this request, and saying that they found "the proposed salary neither reasonable nor justifiable". Hannah Ingram-Moore was eventually hired on a three-month rolling contract worth £85,000 per year – with a maximum term of nine months until a new CEO was hired.
How much money did the Captain Tom Foundation raise?
Captain Sir Tom Moore initially raised £38m which was donated directly to NHS Charities Together, and is not part of the scope of the inquiry set up by the Charities Commission. In The Captain Tom Foundation's first year it raised £1.1m. It was set up in June 2020.
How this figure was spent has also been part of an investigation by the Charity Commission, as more money was to spent on management and fundraising than donated to good causes. However, the commission concluded that it was "satisfied that these specific payments are reasonable reimbursement for expenses incurred by the companies in the formation of the charity".
The accounts for the second year of the charity’s existence have yet to be published.
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