A CHARITY watchdog has ordered a couple to repay £10,000 to a Worcester gymnastics club after they claimed the sum was stolen during a burglary on their home in 2011.
The un-named manager and a trustee of City of Worcester Gymnastics Club said they lost the cash, which they had taken home, during the raid but the Charity Commission discovered the money had yet to be repaid.
The revelation was made in a scathing report about the charity’s work in which commission chiefs investigated whether trustees, including the pair, had discharged their duties properly in reporting and managing the loss of charity funds.
Commission chiefs were made aware of concerns about the charity’s governance and financial management in early 2016.
Complainants suggested the charity had not held an AGM for a number of years and had failed to publish or make available its accounts to members.
The charity had also recruited a trustee to the role of general manager without advertising the post.
The Charity Commission’s report added: “The charity’s record-keeping was generally poor, with little evidence of trustee meetings being held or records of decisions taken.
“We established the charity had little in the way of financial controls and significant missing financial records.
“We established that a burglary at the home of the general manager and connected trustee had resulted in the loss of £10,000 after cash had been taken home.
“A formal repayment plan must be put in place to allow the conflicted trustee and general manager to make good the £10,000 losses incurred as a consequence of their actions.
“In this case the charity did not have sufficiently robust policies on controlling its resources and failed to exercise due care. It has now taken steps to improve this.”
Tracy Howarth, head of regulatory compliance at the Charity Commission, said: “Our intervention with this charity has ensured a repayment plan is in place to recover the £10,000 that was lost.
“Charities of all shapes and sizes should pay attention to their actions and how the public views them.
“We are assured that the trustees have learned from this experience and continue to address our concerns around its governance and conflicts of interest so that the charity can move forward confidently in providing valuable services for the people of Worcester.”
