The Charity Commission has opened a statutory inquiry into an educational organisation that has failed to file its accounts for the past three financial years.
In September 2025, Crossfields Institute was placed in the commission’s double defaulters class inquiry as it had failed to submit its accounting information for the financial years ending 31 March 2023 and 2024.
During that inquiry, the Stroud-based charity went into further default for the 2024-25 financial year.
Through its engagement with the charity, the commission has identified additional regulatory concerns including whether it has been operating with a sufficient number of trustees and if it has appropriate financial controls in place to manage risk to funds.
There are also concerns that the 2008-registered charity’s operations and activity may have been transferred to a non-charitable company.
The inquiry, opened on 7 September this year, will examine whether the charity has a sufficient number of trustees who are willing and capable of managing it in accordance with its governing document.
It will consider the trustees’ compliance with statutory accounting and reporting responsibilities, and whether the charity has appropriate financial controls in place.
The inquiry will assess trustees’ management of connected party transactions and potential conflicts of interest, and whether there has been any unauthorised private benefit.
It will also look at trustees’ decision-making and record keeping, including decisions about the future operation of the charity.
Crossfields Institute has two registered trustees and reported an income of £288,000 and expenditure of £278,000 in the year to March 2022.
The charity has been asked to comment.
