by Mick the Ram

It has emerged that “questionable practices” have been undertaken by the family of Captain Sir Tom Moore, the veteran of World War II who became a household name in 2020 during the pandemic, after raising millions for NHS charities by walking laps of his garden in lockdown.

The former chief executive of the foundation set up in his name, said he was “shocked” and “gobsmacked” by what he found at the charity and public trust had been damaged after Sir Tom’s daughter, Hannah, refused to donate any of the £1.4m received from his book deal, who he felt was motivated by self-interest.

An investigation carried out by the Charity Commission found that Mrs Ingram-Moore and her husband, Colin, benefited from their association with the charity personally, and calls have been made for the couple to now make a “suitable donation” otherwise the public would “understandably feel misled”.

To mark the popular ex-serviceman’s 100th birthday on 30 April 2020, an RAF flypast was given in his honour as well as receiving personal messages from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the Prime Minister, as well as being made an honorary colonel of the British Army.

On the 17 July 2020 he was knighted for his fundraising efforts in the grounds of Windsor Castle.

The father of two, died in February 2021.

Chief Exec’s shocking discoveries

Jack Gilbert, the former chief executive of the foundation set up in Sir Tom’s name, said the number of systems that just did not accord with best practice was shocking.

He explained how he had tackled a whole range of different hurdles and when setting up accounts in the correct format for a charity, which had not been done prior to his arrival, he said he discovered an invoice to Virgin Media, which had been cancelled.

Self-interest

The Charity Commission found Mrs Ingram-Moore was paid £18,000 for an appearance at the Virgin Media O2 Captain Tom Foundation Connector Awards.

She, for her part, argued that her appearance was in a personal capacity and in her own time, but the commission disagreed, saying there was no evidence to support this, and the charity received just £2,000.

“If you’re a chief executive for a charity and you are representing that charity, it is very unusual, unheard of indeed, for the charity not to benefit from activities you’ve done during your working day.” Mr Gilbert called it “deeply unethical” and a strong “level of self-interest”.

Early promises not fulfilled

A spokesperson for the foundation said they are “pleased with the Charity Commission’s unequivocal findings regarding the Ingram-Moores’ misconduct”.

They pointed out that a press release, various marketing materials and the prologue of Sir Tom’s memoir, stated that the books would be used to support the foundation.

Accused couple defend actions

Responding to the report conducted against them, the Ingram-Moores argued it was a “breach of privacy” for the book deal to have been disclosed by the Charity Commission and insisted that “significant fees” were paid to the literary agent, legal and PR professionals, with portions of the money used to support the Foundation.

They feel that there had been no misappropriation of funds from the charity and that they had been treated “unfairly and unjustly” by the inquiry.

No criminal charges

Sir Tom raised an incredible £38.9m for NHS Charities Together, but Commission Chief Executive David Holdsworth said: “The public – and the law – rightly expect those involved in charities to make an unambiguous distinction between their personal interests, and those of the charity and the beneficiaries they are there to serve.”

He believes there are definite instances of a “blurring of boundaries between private and charitable interests” and was sure that the Ingram-Moore’s had benefited significantly.

He called it “misconduct and/or mismanagement” with obvious “repeated failures of governance and integrity”.

That said, the commission concluded that the actions of the family did NOT represent criminal behaviour and therefore it would not be passing its findings to police.

Publisher received assurances

The regulator’s findings showed that a private firm set up by the investigated couple called Club Nook, was paid an advance of £1.47m for Sir Tom’s three books, including his best-selling autobiography, Tomorrow Will be a Good Day.

The publisher Penguin, and promoter Carver PR, said the family gave repeated assurances that part of the advance would be used to set up and fund the foundation, but to date the charity has not received any money from the publishing agreement.

Extras in building forced its demolition

In 2021, Hannah and Colin Ingram-Moore received approval from the council to build a Captain Tom Foundation building beside their home, and referenced the charity’s name and number “numerous times” in the planning application.

When the building was completed it actually contained a spa pool and home cinema, which was met with extreme surprise and described by council enforcement officer Richard Proctor as “wholly unauthorised” and as a result they were forced to demolish the structure.

Back-tracking, the shamed couple declared that the inclusion of the charity’s name in the initial planning application was “an error”, claiming they were busy with “global media work” at the time, but still tried to suggest that had it remained, the building would have been used for charitable purposes.