Naomi Campbell orders new investigation into fashion charity after trustee ban

Model Naomi Campbell said she has instructed new advisers to investigate what happened at her charity Fashion for Relief after she was disqualified from being a trustee for five years, adding aspects of the watchdog’s report were “deeply flawed”.

The 54-year-old said the Charity Commission’s report, which found serious mismanagement of funds including hotel stays and spa treatments, was “incomplete and misleading in their consideration of evidence”.

Campbell was one of three trustees to be disqualified as a result of the probe.

“First of all, I recognise that, as the face of Fashion for Relief, I am ultimately responsible for its conduct,” Campbell said in a statement to the PA news agency.

“Unfortunately, I was not involved in the day-to-day operations of the organisation, and I entrusted the legal and operational management to others.

“I want to assure everyone who has supported us that these findings are being taken very seriously.

“I have instructed new advisers to undertake a detailed investigation of what transpired.”

Campbell insisted she has “never been paid a fee for my participation in Fashion for Relief nor billed any personal expenses to the organisation”.

“I’ve dedicated nearly 30 years of my life to charitable initiatives, and I care deeply about the value and impact of the work I do,” she said.

“Typically, I align my charity work with paid assignments, which cover my travel and related expenses.

“In cases where this is not possible, either myself or personal friends have covered the expenses.

“In fact, in terms of the specific hotel expense mentioned in the report, the hotel has confirmed that all charges were settled by my personal travel agent, who in turn verified that they were reimbursed directly by a third party unaffiliated with the foundation.”

Campbell said she intends to consider all options, including requesting an appeal, to ensure the report “presents a fair and accurate representation of our operations”.

“We believe aspects of the report are deeply flawed,” she added.

The Charity Commission, which registers and regulates charities in England and Wales, opened an inquiry into Fashion for Relief in 2021.

It was dissolved and removed from the register of charities earlier this year.

It had been set up with the aim of uniting the fashion industry to relieve poverty and advance health and education by making grants to other organisations and providing resources after global disasters.

Campbell said the experience had “only strengthened my resolve to continue making a positive impact in the world”.

Fellow charity trustees Bianka Hellmich and Veronica Chou were also disqualified for nine and four years respectively.

It means they are prevented from being a trustee or holding a senior management role in any charity in England and Wales during the length of the disqualification.

The Charity Commission report, published on Thursday, said £344,000 has been recovered and a further £98,000 of charitable funds protected.

The probe found that between April 2016 and July 2022, 8.5% of the charity’s overall expenditure was on charitable grants.

The inquiry said it saw no evidence that trustees took action to ensure fundraising methods were in the charity’s best interests, or that the money it spent was reasonable relative to the income it generated.

It also said it found some fundraising expenditure to be misconduct or mismanagement by the charity’s trustees.

This included a 14,800 euro (£12,300) flight from London to Nice for transferring art and jewellery to a fundraising event in Cannes in 2018.

It also looked into the decision to spend 9,400 euros (£7,800) of charity funds on a three-night stay at a five-star hotel for Campbell.

In these cases, the trustees “failed to show how these were cost-effective and an appropriate use of the charity’s resources”, the Charity Commission said.

It also examined expenses incurred by Campbell totalling nearly 7,940 euros (£6,600), alongside the hotel stay, paid for by the charity.

These costs included spa treatments, room service and the purchase of cigarettes and hotel products.

The regulator said trustees explained that hotel costs were typically covered by a donor to the charity, therefore not costing the charity, but failed to provide any evidence to support this.