THE Captain Tom Foundation is "to close down" following an investigation into the charity's management and amid an ongoing battle over a spa at the family home.
The organisation was founded in 2020 in honour of Sir Captain Tom Moore after he rose to fame for his garden charity laps during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Barrister Scott Stemp, who is acting on behalf of daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore and her husband Colin, said: "It's not news to anybody that the foundation, it seems, is to be closed down following an investigation by the Charity Commission."
He also told the hearing at the Central Bedfordshire Council headquarters that the charity was "unlikely to exist" much longer.
"When I first walk in, the first thing I see is a luxurious spa pool. That's got nothing to do with Captain Tom."
— Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) October 12, 2023
Piers Morgan questions the lockdown hero's family over the pool they used his foundation to get planning permission for.@piersmorgan | @TalkTV | #PMU pic.twitter.com/XEAsnI3PWw
This admission was made as the family appealed a demolition order for their unauthorised spa pool at their £1.2 million home.
Captain Tom's daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore and husband fight spa demolition order
The original blueprints for the site did not include a spa pool with a retrospective application being turned down by local planners.
Chartered Surveyor and representative for the couple, James Paynter, said: "It was felt that a larger building could provide this extra space for this extra facility going forward. The spa pool has the opportunity to offer rehabilitation sessions for elderly people in the area.
"They want to offer one-to-one sessions, only on a once or twice per week basis. They felt this extra limb to create a C-shape was needed to create this facility."
In a statement, Hannah Ingram-Moore and her husband said the height of the new structure is "the same" as the one originally approved.
However, neighbours were quick to complain about the new structure with one saying "It's very brutal".
Piers Morgan: “The majority of the £800k has come from selling trademark products? But you've kept most of it?”
— Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) October 12, 2023
Colin Ingram: "Yes, it's private income."
Piers grills Captain Tom’s family over what happened to the £800k their company made.@piersmorgan | @TalkTV | #PMU pic.twitter.com/b1kENUaw5X
Sir Captain Tom Moore's daughter admits to taking £800k from book sales
This comes after Sir Captain Tom Moore's daughter admitted to pocketing £800k from the late veteran's book sales.
She shared this with Piers Morgan on his new TalkTV show Uncensored, telling the presenter that her father wanted her to have the proceeds.
This is despite original claims that money from one of the books would be given to charity in Captain Tom's name.
She also revealed how the family had received death threats even in the early days of Tom's charity work during Covid-19.
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