The building complex containing a spa and a pool belonging to the daughter of war veteran Captain Tom Moore will likely be demolished after a planning application was rejected.
The Captain Tom Foundation said it ceased taking donations and were closing all channels of payments as the Charity Commission conducted investigations.
Hannah Ingram-Moore and her husband, Colin Ingram-Moore, were accused of using Captain Tom Moore’s charity’s name to build a spa and pool complex at their residence in Bedfordshire.
The couple first requested permission to build a Captain Tom Foundation Building on the grounds of their home but later revised the application to build a larger building containing a spa and pool.
Central Bedfordshire Council, the planning authorities for the area, on Tuesday said: “An enforcement notice requiring the demolition of the now-unauthorised building was issued and this is now subject to an appeal to the Planning Inspectorate."
It comes after the Captain Tom Foundation distanced itself from Mr and Mrs Ingram-Moore’s request “purporting to be in the foundation’s name”.
The Captain Tom Foundation said its sole focus is to ensure that it cooperates with the inquiry by the Charity Commission.
"As a result, the Captain Tom Foundation is not presently actively seeking any funding from donors. Accordingly, we have also taken the decision to close all payment channels while the statutory inquiry remains open.
Screengrab from Central Bedfordshire Council planning permission documents show aerial view of Hannah Ingram-Moore’s - Captain Sir Tom Moore’s daughter - house— (Central Bedfordshire Council/screengrab)
"Once the findings of the statutory inquiry have been communicated, the Captain Tom Foundation will be in a better position to make a decision in relation to its future, but for now, our main priority is to assist the Charity Commission with its inquiry.”
Ms Ingram-Moore, who is the youngest daughter of the Second World War veteran, had requested the planning permission for the "Captain Tom Foundation Building" in 2021 to be built on the grounds of their home in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire.
The L-shaped building, which was partially for use "in connection with the Captain Tom Foundation and its charitable objectives", was given permission by the planners to build a single-storey structure.
However, the family submitted revised plans in February 2022 for the already partly constructed building to build a larger C-shaped building with a spa-pool. It was called the "Captain Tom Building” and it was for “private use” according to the Design & Access and Heritage statement.
Hannah Ingram-Moore, daughter of Captain Sir Tom Moore, during a visit to the National Memorial Arboretum in Alrewas— (PA)
The council refused the retrospective planning permission for the revised plans in November 2022.
Sir Tom Moore, who died in 2021 aged 100, raised nearly £39m for NHS Charities Together during the first wave of Covid in 2020 by walking 100 laps of his garden.
The foundation was set up in his name in May 2020. It was “inspired by the outpouring of goodwill and generosity” for promoting the causes “close to his heart”, according to a statement by the foundation.
The Captain Tom Foundation has itself remained a subject of controversy and scrutiny over misconduct concerns.
In February 2022, The Independent revealed that the foundation attempted to appoint Ms Ingram-Moore as CEO on a six-figure salary. The Charity Commission later blocked this move, which would have seen Ms Ingram-Moore paid in the region of £150,000 – 13.68 per cent of the charity’s total income in its first year.
Stephen Jones, the foundation’s chair of the board of trustees, “categorically” denied that the salary discussed was in six figures at that time.
