Captain Tom charity takes £1,000,000 hit to income
The foundation honouring Captain Sir Tom Moore has registered a more than £1 million fall in income over the space of three years.
The charity, where the centenarian’s daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore was previously CEO, received just £3,656 last year amid what it has described as the ‘massive adverse impact’ of an investigation into its affairs.
Three years ago the foundation set up in the record-breaking fundraiser’s name benefited from huge support with an income of £1.10 million.
Spending in the 12 months to November 2023 dropped by more than half over the same period to £158,840, a newly released annual return shows.
The Captain Tom Foundation was set up to spread the generosity shown by the Second World War veteran among a wide range of good causes.
Captain Tom raised £38.9 million for NHS Charities Together, a separate charity, by walking 100 laps of his garden for his 100th birthday at the height of the Covid lockdown in 2020.
Fundraisers organised by the foundation included the ‘Captain Tom 100’, marking what would have been his 101st birthday in April 2021.
The Charity Commission investigation began 14 months later, with the regulator scrutinising issues including potential conflicts with businesses owned by Ms Ingram-Moore and her husband, Colin.
In July, the Ingram-Moores were disqualified from serving as trustees by the regulator.
The commission said that ‘there has been misconduct and/or mismanagement, the individuals are not fit to be a trustee or hold senior management functions and disqualification is in the public interest.’
In a statement, the family said they ‘fundamentally disagree’ with the decision and spoke of the ‘profound emotional upheaval and financial burden’ which prevented them from appealing.
They described the investigation as ‘a harrowing and debilitating ordeal that has gone on for over two years.’
The foundation said in its 2022 accounts that it had closed all payment channels while the statutory inquiry remains open and on its website states that it is ‘not presently actively seeking any funding from donors.’
The document describes the commission’s intervention as having a ‘massive adverse impact’ affecting its abilities to ‘raise new funds and deliver operational activities.’
‘Once the findings of the Statutory Inquiry have been communicated, The Captain Tom Foundation will be in a better position to make a decision in relation to its future,’ the statement reads.
The Ingram-Moores’ legal team has since indicated that the charity will close once the inquiry has concluded.
The latest return from the foundation was provided by the commission after a request under the Freedom of Information Act.
No other details are given in the document other than the income and expenditure, with personal information redacted.
The charity was originally set up ‘for the advancement of public health and wellbeing’, with a presence across social media.
But the foundation drew concerns at the commission during engagement about Ms Ingram-Moore’s role and pay. The regulator refused permission for her to be employed as CEO on a salary of £100,000 a year, ruling that it was ‘neither reasonable or justifiable’.
She subsequently took up the post on an interim basis salary of £85,000 before stepping aside. The commission later began investigating the connections with the family companies as well as ‘concerns about the trustees’ decision making and the charity’s governance’.
In relation to the links between the Ingram-Moores’ businesses and the foundation, Ms Ingram-Moore has previously admitted that ‘we’ve been incredibly naive’ but insisted the family are ‘wholesome, good people and we run businesses we understand’.
On her website, she has said that the foundation was set up by independent trustees, not the family, in May 2020.
One statement reads: ‘The Independent Trustees are responsible for all financial matters within the charity.
‘For absolute clarity, I am not a trustee, and have never made any payments on behalf of the charity.
‘My foremost ambition is to ensure my father’s legacy will support positive social change now and in the future.’
A spokesperson for the commission said: ‘Our inquiry is ongoing and as such, we cannot provide any wider update at this time.’
Metro.co.uk has approached the Captain Tom Foundation for further comment.
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