Safe Passage International has appointed an interim chief executive following the departures of its former CEO, its chair and another trustee earlier this year.
Outgoing CEO Wanda Wyporska posted on social media on Friday that she and chair Magid Magid, the former lord mayor of Sheffield, had both left the refugee charity in April after less than two years in post.
Leyla Kayacik, former special representative for migration and refugees at the Council of Europe, also left her trustee post in March after less than two months at the charity.
Wyporska did not state the reason for her exit but said in her statement: “There is a great deal of work to do on anti-racism in the refugee sector, and I shall continue to fight implicit, explicit, direct and indirect discrimination and racism at all levels of organisations, as I always have done.”
A spokesperson for the charity thanked Wyporska and Magid for their contributions and announced that former Refugee Council chief executive Donna Covey had been appointed as interim CEO.
Meanwhile, the Charity Commission confirmed that it engaged with Safe Passage International after it filed a serious incident report in March and took no further action.
Recruitment processes open
The charity’s spokesperson confirmed that Wyporska left on 24 April.
“We thank Wanda for her service and wish her the very best for the future,” they said.
“We’re pleased to announce that Donna Covey has started as interim CEO for a period of six months as we work to recruit a permanent CEO.
“Donna is an experienced CEO who has had many leadership roles across a range of NGOs. She is passionate about human rights, particularly refugee and migration issues.
The spokesperson also confirmed that Magid stepped down in April while Kayacik left on 20 March, according to documents filed with Companies House.
On Magid’s departure, the spokesperson said: “We are sure he will continue to champion our cause and we thank him for his contributions. The trustees are in the process of recruiting a new chair.
“The unaccompanied children and refugee families we work with, and our young leaders, remain at the heart of Safe Passage International.
“As ever, our mission is clear: reuniting families torn apart by war and persecution, and campaigning for safe routes for refugees.”
Former CEO proud of work at charity
Wyporska, who replaced the charity’s founding CEO Beth Gardiner-Smith last year, said in her statement: “As some of you will know, the first third of 2025 has been one sucker punch after another, on many levels for me.
“My huge thanks to those who have supported me along the way and in the past month as I’ve taken time to rest and heal.
“In April I left Safe Passage International, along with a new trustee and my wonderful chair Magid Magid, whom I greatly admire for his deep integrity.
“I’m proud of my work there, which saw SPI undertake a governance review, begin work on a new international strategy, take up a seat on the Family Reunification UN steering committee and a similar role at Together With Refugees.”
Wyporska, who is a trustee of the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation and National Football Museum, said she would offer consultancy services to the sector following a summer break.
In the 2023 calendar year, Safe Passage International recorded an income of £2.42m and expenditure of £1.93m.
Civil Society has contacted Magid for comment.
