A military charity has suspended its operations after experiencing “reputational damage” that has “made operating very difficult”, according to its chair of trustees.
The Portsmouth-based charity Forgotten Veterans UK announced on Facebook that it had been “extremely difficult for the charity to run effectively” in recent months.
The Charity Commission opened a regulatory compliance case into the organisation after an auditor flagged up a failure to provide records for £151,000 in donations and £89,000 of expenditure.
Independent examiner Helena Wilkinson, from chartered accountants Price Bailey, wrote in the Forgotten Veterans UK accounts that large sums of money had not been properly accounted for, after the charity filed its accounts for the year to November 2021 279 days late.
Wilkinson also said there were no minutes to cover the year.
In May it was reported that three of the charity’s four trustees had quit the board.
A statement published on Facebook on behalf of Anthony Reid, the chair of Forgotten Veterans UK, said: “The past few months have been extremely difficult for the charity to run effectively even with the sterling effort of the volunteers.
“Therefore, the Fort is currently closed and we have suspended all operations whilst we consider all options available to us for the future.
“Plans are being made for any beneficiaries that were attending ongoing appointments at the Fort to be referred to other services.
“Unfortunately, the reputational damage to both the CEO and the charity has been severe and as such has made operating very difficult.
“The trustees, along with external advisers, are exploring all possible options as to the future of the charity.”