Naomi Campbell in Paris on Thursday, where she received an honour from the French government. Picture: Gallo Images
Former supermodel Naomi Campbell has been banned from running a charity for five years after an investigation found that funds raised by her charity, Fashion for Relief, were misused for personal expenses like spa treatments and room service.
The UK Charity Commission’s inquiry, released on Thursday, revealed “multiple instances of misconduct”. This included using charity funds to pay for a luxury hotel stay for Campbell in the south of France.
The watchdog found that between April 2016 and July 2022, only 8.5% of the charity’s spending went towards grants for charitable causes. The commission’s findings led to Campbell and two other trustees being disqualified from running charities.
Campbell, who rose to fame in the 1990s and became the first Black model to appear on the cover of UK Vogue in 20 years, has continued to be a highly influential figure in fashion. In June, an exhibition dedicated to her career opened at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
Speaking in Paris on Thursday, where she received an honour from the French government, Campbell denied any responsibility. “I was not in control of my charity. I put the control in the hands of a lawyer.”
She added that she is investigating the matter, emphasising that all her efforts and funds raised are meant to support charitable causes.
Fashion for Relief was known for hosting glamorous, star-studded fundraising events in London and Cannes. The charity supported projects like aid for child refugees and victims of the Ebola crisis. A 2017 event in the French Riviera was attended by celebrities including Leonardo DiCaprio, Antonio Banderas and Uma Thurman.
However, the investigation found questionable spending, such as a three-night hotel stay in 2018 that cost $10,400. The Charity Commission said there was no evidence that trustees ensured these expenses were reasonable. The regulator also scrutinised additional costs totaling £6,600 for Campbell’s hotel stay, including spa treatments, room service, and cigarette purchases. Trustees claimed a donor usually covered these expenses but could not provide evidence.
The Commission concluded there was serious misconduct and mismanagement in the charity’s administration since its founding in 2005. Fashion for Relief, which aimed to unite the fashion industry to support people living in adversity, was dissolved and removed from the charity register earlier this year.
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