Mine clearance charity the Halo Trust has suspended its chief executive following a “serious deterioration” in relations between him and the board.

Guy Willoughby, who co-founded the charity 25 years ago, has been suspended following reports in The Daily Telegraph in January about his pay packet and the confirmation that the charity pays for the boarding school education of his children.

A spokesman for the Halo Trust said: “The board of trustees of the Halo Trust has taken the unanimous decision to suspend Guy Willoughby as chief executive following a serious deterioration in relations between him and the Board over the governance of the charity.

“The board will now undertake a review of the situation before deciding on the next steps to be taken.”

Willoughby receives a financial package of between £210,000 and £220,000 from the Halo Trust, according to its 2013 accounts.

The Telegraph has reported that Willoughby was ordered to step down as chief executive by trustees at the charity's board meeting last week. The paper states that the decision was prompted by its investigation into the charity’s finances.

A friend of Willoughby told the paper that he has done nothing wrong and has been “treated disgracefully” by the board.

In January the paper reported him as saying that because he and his wife spent so much time abroad working for Halo, it was acceptable for the charity to pay his children's school fees.

The charity became famous for its associations with Princess Diana before her death and her son Prince Harry is one of its patrons. Actor/director Angelina Jolie is a trustee of the charity.

The Halo Trust last year had an income of £26.4m and expenditure of £25.7m. The charity employs 8,000 staff across 16 current and former war-zones.