The charity at the heart of the latest Buckingham Palace race row could face a probe into its finances by the Charity Commission as the Greater London Assembly re-examines grant money to ensure it has been ‘used as intended’.
The Charity Commission is reportedly ‘assessing material’ related to abuse and domestic violence charity Sistah Space, which offers support to victims of abuse and violence within the African and Caribbean communities.
Meanwhile the finance officers at the Greater London Authority have been asked to see if grants given to the charity ‘have been used as intended’, the Telegraph reports.
It comes after the charity’s founder was repeatedly asked where she was ‘really from’ on a visit to Buckingham Palace by former lady-in-waiting Lady Susan Hussey, 83. Lady Hussey has since resigned from royal duties.
Sistah Space was ‘forced to temporarily cease’ many of its operations after Ngozi Fulani spoke out about her treatment by Lady Susan Hussey.
Ms Fulani said she suffered ‘horrific abuse’ on social media after the late Queen’s lady-in-waiting repeatedly challenged her when she said she was British.
It is not the first time the palace has been at the heart of a race row – most noticeably with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex after Meghan Markle said she had been subject to racist comments by a member of the royal family.
In a statement on Instagram on Friday night, Sistah Space said: ‘Unfortunately recent events meant that we were forced to temporarily cease many of our operations to ensure the safety of our service users and our team.
‘We are overwhelmed by the amount of support and encouragement and look forward to fully reinstating our services as soon as safely possible.’
But the charity continues to make headlines this week after a social media user posted a series of allegations over its organisation and finances, thought to be the basis for the Charity Commission’s involvement.
The watchdog has not announced an official investigation or inquiry into Sistah Space.
Meanwhile the chairman of the Greater London authority has ordered for its accounts to be re-examined over fears that thousands of pounds in grants given to the charity may not have been ‘used as intended’.
The Twitter thread, containing almost 200 tweets, purports to highlight issues with Sistah Space’s finances and the way the organisation is run. It explicitly mentioned two grants worth £12,000 and £40,000 given to Sistah Space by the Greater London Assembly (GLA).
Chair of the London Assembly Audit Panel Neil Garratt confirmed on social media that he has asked the Assembly’s finance chief to ‘look into it’.
He said on Twitter: ‘These are unproven allegations, but part of this thread mentions two five-figure grants from the GLA which may not have been used as intended. As Chair of the London Assembly Audit Panel, I have spoken to the GLA finance chief this morning and asked them to be looked into.’
He added: ‘When I saw prima facie plausible concerns raised within my remit, I felt it was my duty to act. Others may see it differently and I realise this sounds boringly old fashioned, but in my defence I am a conservative and I actually do believe this stuff.’
The first GLA grant was awarded in 2019, giving Sistah Space £12,000 to run a poll – but the anonymous Twitter user claimed the survey was a ’10-minute job’ which would not have cost that amount.
The second grant, worth £40,000, was made to the charity in 2020 using its registration number, but was allegedly labelled as being given to an organisation under a different name, Royal Dock.
Mr Garratt added the investigation into the grants would seek to establish whether the money was given to Sistah Space under a different name or if it is an admin error.
The charity, which operates throughout London, registered total income of £363,506 for the financial year ending March 2021, including two government contracts worth £52,346.
This compares to just more than £50,000 in 2019. It says it is saving money to purchase a property as a refuge for victims of domestic violence and abuse, has also received donations from the Department for Culture, Media, Digital and Sport, and £60,000 from Comic Relief.
According to the Charity Commission’s website, the year’s financial report was received almost 70 days late.
The report describes the charity’s struggle to record accounts on time due to the sudden departure of its accounts officer, which caused ‘a massive disruption in the organisation’s ability to record accounts in a timely manner.’
It also highlighted problems faced by charities worldwide due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
It also cited ‘personal issues’ among staff members which led to long delays, but added: ‘We have now engaged an independent accounting firm and are confident that any issues are a thing of the past.’
A Charity Commission spokesperson said: ‘We are assessing material posted on social media about the charity Sistah Space to determine whether it raises matters that fall within the Charity Commission’s remit.’
The latest Trustee Report, signed off by founder Ms Fulani, blamed staffing issues for the problems collating its account after the chief finance officer ‘as off for a very long time due to covid issues’.
The report said: ‘Finding a temporary replacement [finance officer] was also a massive issue as the charity deals with the delicate subject of domestic abuse and safeguarding is key.
‘Eventually the finance person had to retire and that caused a massive disruption in the organisations ability to record accounts in a timely manner.
‘We were able to secure a replacement, but that also took significant time.
‘Meanwhile it was left to Trustees and key workers to maintain records and manage a unique set of circumstances that affected people and business worldwide.’
The charity’s financial statement said its new finance officer was ‘overwhelmed’ by its rapid growth and also ‘unfamiliar with procedures for charities’: ‘We engaged a finance officer who was overwhelmed by the sudden increase in our accounts and unfamiliar with procedures for charities and income over a specified amount.
‘It took a long while before we were able to catch back up as the finance officer had certain information and we were obliged to wait until we could contact him.’
A Sistah Space spokesperson told the Telegraph: ‘Sistah Space has not been approached by the Charity Commission.
‘What we do know is they are assessing information posted on social media, part of their normal procedure, but haven’t opened an official investigation, however should they contact us we will of course cooperate fully.’
Ms Fulani previously took to social media to describe her ‘shock’ at the treatment she received while at Buckingham Palace.
Lady Susan, who had served the late Queen for six decades, repeatedly challenged Ms Fulani when she said she was British at the Queen Consort’s reception highlighting violence against women and girls.
The 83-year-old stepped down from her honorary role ‘with immediate effect’ amid a furious outcry.
Ms Fulani told ITV’s Good Morning Britain that the royal had also touched her hair during the encounter.
‘I was stood next to two other women – black women – and she (Lady Susan) just made a beeline for me and she took my locks and moved it out of the way so that she could see my name badge,’ the Sistah Space founder said.
‘That’s a no-no. I wouldn’t put my hands in someone’s hair and culturally it’s not appropriate.’
The charity is run by three trustees and nine further volunteers. It primarily advocates for better support for ‘women and girls of African and Caribbean heritage affected by abuse’ and also runs a charity shop to help abuse survivors fund necessary items.
Daily Mail (UK)