Chorley gymnastics club facing charity commission probe amid concerns over payments to trustees

A Chorley gymnastics club is being investigated amid concerns about payments made to trustees.

Government regulator The Charity Commission has launched the fresh investigation into Flic Flac Gymnastics Club, having already opened a probe over repeated late filing of accounting information.

The club is among various units located next to the Park Hall Hotel and the former Camelot Theme Park site and is run as a charity to encourage young people to take part in gymnastics.

According to the regulator, late filing is generally regarded as mismanagement and/or misconduct while the latest investigation was opened in response to further regulatory concerns which emerged in July.

It says it “has identified concerns about payments to trustees that may be unauthorised by the charity’s governing document, as well as concerns around managing conflicts of interest in relation to any trustee payments.”

The commission also said the charity is currently operating with an insufficient number of trustees. According to its public record on the register of charities, Andrew Finch and Janet Lavender are the only trustees and it is more than 200 days late in reporting its charity information.

The following charity regulatory issues are to be probed in the new investigation:

“Whether the trustees are complying with their legal duties, with particular regard to their accounting and reporting responsibilities; their compliance with the charity’s governing document; and the extent of any unauthorised trustee personal benefit.
“The extent to which any failings or weaknesses identified in the administration of the charity by the inquiry are a result of misconduct and/or mismanagement by the trustees.”

The Commission may extend the scope of the inquiry if additional regulatory issues emerge and it will publish a report detailing the issues examined, the outcomes, and any action taken.

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