Prince Harry’s once-beloved charity, Sentebale, has descended into chaos following a dramatic series of resignations, bitter personal feuds, and accusations of financial mismanagement — with the BBC reporting that the row has sparked a regulatory probe and could result in a full investigation by the Charity Commission.
The charity, founded in 2006 by Prince Harry and Prince Seeiso of Lesotho to support vulnerable children affected by HIV and AIDS in southern Africa, is now facing its most turbulent period yet. Sources close to former trustees told BBC News that internal disputes over finances, leadership, and strategy — alongside serious personality clashes — have shattered trust at the top.
In a dramatic breakdown of relations, Prince Harry, Prince Seeiso, and the entire board of trustees resigned from Sentebale earlier this month, citing a “loss in trust and confidence” in the chair of the board, Sophie Chandauka. According to a statement from the departing trustees, “It is devastating that the relationship between the charity’s trustees and the chair of the board broke down beyond repair, creating an untenable situation.”
Financial tensions are said to have been a key source of the conflict. Despite Prince Harry personally donating an additional £1.2 million from his best-selling memoir Spare, concerns over long-term funding persisted. Sentebale acknowledged to the BBC that while the one-off donation was “incredibly useful,” it did not offer a sustainable pipeline.
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Central to the financial controversy is the charity’s costly US fundraising push. Sentebale hired a women-led strategy firm, Lebec, to build a high-net-worth donor base in the United States. The charity told the BBC the consultancy team had successfully established 65 key donor relationships by October 2024, but sources close to the former trustees claim the £500,000 investment into consultants had failed to generate tangible results.
“It’s widely believed that had the fundraising efforts delivered, this crisis might have been avoided,” one insider told the BBC.
The BBC also reported that the Charity Commission is now assessing the claims and will decide whether to escalate the case to a full statutory inquiry.
Further fuelling the turmoil are serious allegations from chair Sophie Chandauka, who has claimed she was the target of bullying and misogyny from within the organisation. She has filed a whistleblower complaint and accused Prince Harry of attempting to push her out of the charity’s leadership.
In an interview with Sky News, Chandauka claimed the Duke of Sussex had become a “barrier to funding,” saying, “It was pretty obvious to me that we had lost quite a number of corporate sponsors.” She also recounted a bizarre incident at a polo fundraiser, where she was reportedly manoeuvred out of a video frame by the Duchess of Sussex. “Prince Harry asked me to issue some sort of a statement in support of the duchess and I said I wouldn’t,” she said.
Adding to the tension, there were reported disputes over whether Harry’s desire to include a Netflix film crew at charity events was appropriate.
Related: Prince Harry Quits Beloved Charity Amid Explosive Power Struggle
Despite the allegations, sources close to the departing trustees reject Chandauka’s claims and insist the split stemmed from governance concerns, not personal politics.
Chandauka, who often uses the title “Dr” based on an honorary degree from Coventry University, has insisted Sentebale can move forward without its royal founders. But for Prince Harry, the situation has struck a deep personal chord. A friend of the Duke told the BBC he feels as if “he’s had one of his fingers cut off.”
What was once a deeply personal cause tied to Princess Diana’s legacy has now become the centre of a bitter public fallout — one that could see regulators step in to examine the very heart of the charity’s operations.
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