Statutory inquiry launched following child sex offence investigation at charity theatre

06 Feb 2014 News

A Charity Commission inquiry has been launched following the arrest of two men in a child safeguarding operation at a Leicestershire charity.

Concordia Theatre Credit: Roy William Shakespeare

A Charity Commission inquiry has been launched following the arrest of two men in a child safeguarding operation at a Leicestershire charity.

The Charity Commission was alerted to issues at the charity following the joint criminal and safeguarding investigation by Leicestershire Police and Leicestershire County Council. Several people connected to the Concordia Theatre, which is run by the Hinckley Concordia Association, are under investigation.

Four men have been excluded by the theatre, two of which were arrested and have since been released on conditional police bail. The police investigation has been codenamed Operation Goliath.

Search warrants have been executed at four premises, one of those being the charity itself.

Detective inspector Richard Hiom said: “We are interested in speaking to any person who has connections to the theatre and has information around the possible sexual offences that have been committed.”

The charity, which provides facilities for recreation and leisure activities and established a community centre, including the Concordia Theatre, to advance the education of local residents, is being investigated by the Charity Commission over concerns of the safeguarding of charity beneficiaries.

The inquiry, which opened at the end of January, is to examine various regulatory concerns relating to the trustees’ duties and responsibilities relating to their administration and management of the charity.
 
The charity’s secretary and elected trustee, William Hare, said: “We are fully co-operating from all the relevant channels and right now it would be inappropriate for us to comment further.”

There is no suggestion that Hare is linked to any child sex offences.

Lesley Hagger, director for children and family services at Leicestershire County Council, said: “We want to reassure parents that safeguarding children is a priority. This includes ensuring that it's appropriate for people to work in positions of trust with children and we're working closely with the police and other partners on this investigation.”