British supermodel Naomi Campbell has been disqualified from serving as a charity trustee for five years after the Charity Commission discovered serious mismanagement of funds at Fashion for Relief, an organisation she founded.
This mismanagement included using charity funds to pay for Campbell’s stay at a five-star hotel in Cannes, France, as well as for spa treatments, room service, and cigarettes. The Charity Commission also disqualified two other trustees of the charity as a result of the investigation.
The Charity Commission, which oversees charities in England and Wales, initiated an inquiry into Fashion for Relief in 2021. The charity, founded by Campbell in 2005, was dissolved and removed from the register of charities earlier this year.
Fashion for Relief was established with the goal of uniting the fashion industry to alleviate poverty and advance health and education by making grants to other organisations and providing resources for global disasters. The charity organised fundraising events to generate income, including in Cannes and London.
The Charity Commission’s inquiry revealed that between April 2016 and July 2022, only 8.5% of the charity’s overall expenditure was used for charitable grants. The probe found no evidence that the trustees ensured fundraising methods were in the charity’s best interests or that the money spent was reasonable relative to the income generated.
The inquiry also identified fundraising expenditure as misconduct or mismanagement by the charity’s trustees. For example, the charity spent €14,800 (£12,300) on a flight from London to Nice to transfer art and jewellery to a fundraising event in Cannes in 2018. Additionally, the decision to spend €9,400 (£7,800) of charity funds on a three-night stay at a five-star hotel for Campbell was questioned.
The Charity Commission stated that the trustees “failed to show how these were cost-effective and an appropriate use of the charity’s resources.” Furthermore, the inquiry examined expenses incurred by Campbell totalling nearly €7,940 (£6,600), including spa treatments, room service, and the purchase of cigarettes and hotel products, all paid for by the charity.
Bianka Hellmich has been disqualified as a trustee for nine years, and Veronica Chou for four years, in addition to Campbell’s five-year ban. This means they are prohibited from serving as a trustee or holding a senior management role in any charity in England and Wales during the length of the disqualification.
