A group of public figures has called for the Freud Museum to face an inquiry over claims of bullying and misconduct among staff and board members at the London-based institution.
The 20-strong group of writers, academics and psychoanalysts – including Hanif Kureishi, Judith Butler, Marina Warner and Slavoj Žižek – signed a letter last week which called on the Charity Commission to investigate what the group alleges to be “serious issues” with the management and governance of the museum.
The museum, in Hampstead, north London, was the last home of Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, prior to his death in 1939. It remained his daughter Anna Freud's, a children’s psychoanalyst, home until her death in 1982, when she bequeathed it as a museum.
The Freud Museum was formally registered as a charity in 2006 and has an annual income of just over £863,000, according to its most recently filed accounts.
Claims of ‘autocratic’ board decision-making
Among the claims made in the letter are that the museum’s board of trustees has alienated staff members with its allegedly “autocratic” decision-making and promoted a divisive and partisan approach to psychoanalytic practice.
The group also alleges that the board has attempted to block visiting speakers on “political” grounds.
Describing itself as “friends” of the museum and including former trustees, directors and current honorary fellows, the group also claimed that an intimidating atmosphere has led to a third of the museum’s staff leaving in the past year.
The Guardian reported that the letter claimed that the museum is run in a “divisive” and “unhealthy” way by a small clique of trustees, in contravention of the principles of good charity governance.
Trustees of the museum told the Guardian that the allegations were unevidenced and unsubstantiated.
The Freud Museum has itself filed a serious incident report with the Charity Commission.
A commission spokesperson said: “We can confirm that, in line with our guidance, the Freud Museum has filed a serious incident report relating to a dispute with an external group.
“We’re assessing information to determine if there is a role for the commission.”
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