The former chair of a health charity in London has been banned after benefitting from nearly £350,000 over two years, around 60% of the organisation’s income during that period.
Following an investigation, the Charity Commission has disqualified Island Health Trust’s former chair, Suzanne Goodband, from serving as a trustee for seven years.
The regulator also criticised the charity for appointing a consultant known to Goodband, who was paid a total of £105,835 across two financial years.
Payments to Goodband and the consultant were made for project management services after the charity was approached by a property developer regarding its main asset – the Island Health Centre on the Isle of Dogs – in 2014.
£165,000 repaid
The property proposal would have involved the Island Health Trust selling a long lease to the developer, potentially generating around £10m over the next three to eight years for the charity.
The trustees decided to engage Goodband’s consultancy SGIS to project manage the strategic development of the charity quickly and paid the firm £349,955 between March 2015 and March 2017.
Meanwhile, in March 2015, the trustees agreed to pay the consultant at a daily rate of £1,000 for days worked on specific projects initially but they eventually received £105,835 over the two-year period.
The charity also entered into service contracts with two other former trustees, who each received payments for specialist consultancy work of £15,913 and £8,325, respectively.
Ultimately, the redevelopment opportunities did not progress.
In July 2019, after opening a statutory inquiry, the commission appointed an interim manager who recommended legal action to recover some of the consultancy fees.
In November 2021, Goodband agreed to repay £165,000 to the charity in order to settle the litigation.
Goodband was subsequently disqualified from serving as a trustee, but not from holding other positions at a charity, for seven years in January 2024.
‘Fresh start’ under new board
The commission concluded that Goodband and the other former trustees failed to exercise the requisite care and skill in managing the charity’s resources.
It found that they breached their legal trustee duties and responsibilities by failing to act in the best interests of the charity and acting outside the powers of its governing document.
Amy Spiller, head of investigations at the Charity Commission, said: “We as the regulator, and the public, rightly expect trustees to spend funds in a way that best achieves their charity’s purpose.
“While charities can enter into contracts with parties connected to the trustees, this should be cost effective to ensure funds ultimately help those in need, and the conflict of interest must be properly managed.
“The actions by the former trustees of Island Health Trust fell short of these expectations and the excessive spending was unjustified.
“I’m pleased following our intervention that funds have been recovered and a new trustee board can give the charity a fresh start.”
‘Challenging chapter in charity’s history’
The charity’s current board of trustees said the commission’s report “marks the formal closure of a challenging chapter in the charity’s history”.
“Acknowledging the challenges of the past, the current trustees are dedicated to learning from this process and ensuring the charity's sustained focus on its core mission: serving our community with integrity and accountability,” they said in a statement.
“The current Island Health Trust leadership welcomes the Charity Commission's recognition that 'the current trustees have made significant progress to address the governance failings in this report'.
“We are encouraged by this acknowledgement and remain dedicated to building upon this progress to ensure continued robust oversight and sound governance.
“Island Health Trust reaffirms its commitment to transparency, responsible and effective governance, and continuing to provide essential services to the community through the Island Health Centre.”
