The Charity Commission has announced statutory inquiries into two connected charities because of concerns about potential misconduct or mismanagement.
Investigations have been launched into the Jewish education charities Dalaid and the Schwarzschild Foundation, which both operate out of the same building and share trustee Maurice Levenson.
Levenson is also the chair of Dalaid, according to the charity’s entry on the Charity Commission’s online register.
Dalaid was set up with the aim to relieve poverty and advance Jewish education, while the Schwarzchild Foundation is described as providing education and the relief of poverty for women and girls in the orthodox Jewish faith.
The commission said it was investigating “potential misconduct or mismanagement” at both charities.
The regulator said both inquiries would cover issues including:
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Trustees’ compliance with their legal duties in respect of their administration, governance and management of the charity
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The financial controls and management of the charity including whether its funds have been properly expended solely for the exclusive charitable purposes and can be accounted for
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Whether there has been misconduct and/or mismanagement by those in control of the charity
In the case of Dalaid, the commission said it was investigating “the administration of the charity and potential risks to the charity’s property”.
In relation to the Schwarzchild Foundation, the commission specified that the first point “includes compliance with the charity’s governing document, management of potential conflicts of interest and whether there has been any unauthorised trustee benefit”.
The commission also said its “main concerns relate to whether charitable funds and other assets of the charity have been used for the purposes intended.”
The foundation has had an annual income of £1,500 or less in each of the past five years, while Dalaid’s was £925,000 in the year to the end of March 2022.