The Charity Commission has closed its regulatory compliance case into the Actors’ Benevolent Fund (ABF) following a high-profile dispute between trustees and said it has “learned lessons” from its intervention.
In February 2022, the Commission opened a regulatory compliance case into concerns about governance and financial controls at the charity, following a major disagreement around how trustees were appointed and removed from the charity’s board.
As part of its case, the Commission used its legal powers to appoint temporary trustees based on the member votes counted during the charity’s AGM in 2022.
The regulator also ordered the charity to hold a new election to give its members another opportunity to have a democratic say in the charity’s trusteeships.
A review carried out by the Commission in response to a complaint made about its intervention concluded that it treated trustees excluded by the charity in a governance shake-up “unfairly”.
While the Commission previously defended its intervention, it today said it has “learned lessons itself as to how such cases should be handled in future”.
In January, ABF successfully elected a new board of trustees, although it reported “serious concerns” over almost half of the votes cast to the police.
Intervention concludes
During its case, the Commission found the charity was operating without sufficient financial policies and had an unclear governing document which ultimately contributed to the dispute.
The Commission said it was assured the ABF’s new board of trustees appointed in January are working together in the best interests of the charity.
ABF has evidenced significant commitment to continuing to improve its governance, the Commission said, including developing a plan to revitalise governance and a strategy on how to better meet the needs of its beneficiaries.
The charity has also updated its governing document so that it can better guide the trustees.
The Commission said it is therefore satisfied that its active engagement can conclude, expecting trustees to continue their efforts.
Commission: ‘We have apologised’
Helen Earner, director of regulatory services at the Charity Commission, said: “We have worked to draw a line under what has been a very disruptive period for the Actors’ Benevolent Fund and our regulatory compliance case has now concluded.
“The charity has set in motion several positive changes to strengthen how it operates and has a newly elected trustee board, and we’re hopeful there is now a renewed focus on helping beneficiaries.
“This has been a difficult time for all involved and we acknowledge some parties remain unhappy.
“We have ourselves learned lessons from this case and are already taking these forward in how we handle other cases where trustee appointment is disputed.
“We have also apologised for not including all past and present trustees in the early stages of our case, which was a fair challenge to our approach, but has not had a material impact on the overall outcome.
“We encourage other charities to recognise the impact disagreements can have and take steps to avoid these situations.
“As regulator we cannot referee differences of opinion between trustees, but if necessary, we will step in and use our powers to appoint trustees, or assist a charity or its members to appoint trustees.”
ABF: ‘Hugely positive step’
A spokesperson for the charity said they were “very pleased” that the case has concluded.
“The Commission is fully satisfied that all matters raised have been dealt with by the ABF and that the new board elected in January is focused on prioritising the best interests of the charity and its beneficiaries,” they said.
“This is a hugely positive step forward for the charity, along with recent confirmation of the king being our patron, all of which signifies a new chapter for the ABF, and is the result of a great deal of work carried out over the past two years to improve the charity’s governance.”
The charity appointed broadcaster Loyd Grossman as its chair following the trustee election in January but the spokesperson confirmed that he had since been replaced.
“Loyd advised us that he would not have sufficient time needed to dedicate to the charity, in light of other commitments,” they said.
“We have been delighted to appoint experienced trustees Hannah Whittingham and Alex Macqueen as our new co-chairs at a pivotal time in the charity’s history.
Grossman said in a statement: “The ABF needs and deserves someone able to devote a significant amount of time as chair and I regrettably realised my existing commitments would not allow that.
“The charity does great work, they will continue to do so and I wish them the very best.”
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