The Charity Commission has today confirmed that it has opened a statutory inquiry into the Lantern of Knowledge Educational Trust (1111331). The inquiry was opened on 17 February 2018.

The Commission’s inquiry is examining the charity’s general administration, governance and management by the trustees, including the management and supervision of staff at the school with access to children or young people. It will also examine the charity’s policies and procedures, including those relating to safeguarding.

In a report into the school published by Ofsted in January 2018, the inspectorate concludes that “governors have not held school leaders to account for the decline in standards”, and “have too readily accepted information from school leaders without insisting that it is rigorously analysed”.

The opening of the inquiry follows engagement with the trustees and a compliance visit to the school’s premises in November 2017.

The Commission has exercised its powers, under sections 47 and 52 of the Charities Act 2011, to compel the provision of information and records.

It is the Commission’s intention, in accordance with its policy, to publish a report after it has concluded the inquiries, detailing what issues the inquiries looked at, what actions were undertaken and what the outcomes were. Reports of previous inquiries by the Commission are available on GOV.UK.

If there has been misconduct or mismanagement in a charity or the charity’s beneficiaries, staff, property or assets are at risk, the Commission will take robust action to both protect these and deal with the failings either of its own motion and/or in collaboration with other agencies.

The charity’s details can be viewed on the Commission’s online charity search tool.

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Notes to editors

1. Charity Commission is the independent regulator of charities in England and Wales. To find out more about our work, see our annual report.
2. Search for charities on our online register.
3. The Commission’s role is as charity regulator to oversee charity trustees’ compliance with charity law duties and responsibilities.
4. Section 46 of the Charities Act 2011 gives the Commission the power to institute inquiries. The opening of an inquiry gives the Commission access to a range of investigative, protective and remedial legal powers.
5. The Commission does not investigate matters relating to education standards in schools; this is a matter for the DfE, Ofsted and/or other authorities.

Alongside the Department of Homeland Security’s Secretary Nielsen, the Home Secretary and Aviation Minister heard from key aviation representatives including from Heathrow and Manchester airports, and Virgin Atlantic Airways and British Airways.

The meeting is part of an ongoing collaboration between the UK government and the civil aviation industry.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd said:

The global aviation system continues to be a target for terrorists who seek to destroy our way of life. This is an issue that is not isolated to either one country or one airline.

The UK is a global leader on aviation security and today was a chance to continue our strong collaboration with international partners, such as the US, as well as industry.

We agreed how important it is to continue sharing information and capabilities when it came to combating the terrorist threat and I heard about the good work already being implemented by airlines and airports to protect the travelling public.

I look forward to continuing this close engagement as we all work together on the safety and the security of our air travel.

The Charity Commission has today confirmed that a statutory inquiry into the Essex Islamic Academy (also known as Ripple Road Mosque) (1131755) is underway, having started in October 2017. The announcement, which confirms the Commission has been in regulatory engagement with the charity since 2017, follows the conclusion of the criminal trial today of Umar Ahmed Haque, a former religious teacher at the charity.

The Commission did not previously make the opening of the inquiry or its prior regulatory engagement with the charity public to avoid prejudicing the police investigation and subsequent criminal trial.

At the start of the trial, Mr Haque pleaded guilty to disseminating terrorist material to children at the Essex Islamic Academy. Following a 6 week trial at the London Central Criminal Court, Mr Haque has today been convicted of further offences, including the preparation of terrorist acts also relating to the Essex Islamic Academy.

Now the criminal proceedings are over, the regulator will resume its investigation in full. Once the Commission has completed its investigatory enquiries, it will deal with any failings or evidence of misconduct or mismanagement by taking appropriate regulatory action.

As part of the inquiry into the Essex Islamic Academy, the Commission will consider how Mr Haque was able to attempt to radicalise children, and what the trustees and others at the charity knew about this. The regulator will examine the level of supervision, due diligence and oversight the charity had over Mr Haque, and its adherence to safeguarding policies and procedures.

The Commission has liaised closely with multiple agencies including the police, educational regulators and the local authority on this matter since information was shared with the regulator by the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command about Mr Haque in 2017.

Michelle Russell, Director of Investigations, Monitoring, and Enforcement at the Charity Commission said:

The crimes that Mr Haque has been convicted of today are horrendous, and are likely to have a devastating effect on many of the young people exposed to this harm.

This is one of the worst cases we have seen with children, as young as 11, being exposed to harm through attempted radicalisation and terrorist material by this man. The welfare of these children is of utmost importance to all agencies involved. Mr Haque’s abhorrent actions don’t just affect these children, but their families and the community as a whole. It is important that those affected have the appropriate support made available to them, and the Commission will continue to do all it can to support the statutory agencies to ensure that this is the case.

The vast majority of mosques and supplementary schools including madrassahs do good work and are an important resource in local communities. What happened clearly damages the trust and confidence the children’s parents had in the charity he was employed at, as well as wider public confidence. We and the public expect charities, particularly those working with children and young people, to be safe places, free from abuse or harm. This was not the case here, where Mr Haque grossly abused the trust placed in him because of his position and teaching role.

Today’s conviction will reassure the public that such abuse is not tolerated, and that those responsible will be held accountable for their actions. We will continue to work closely with the police and other authorities to tackle the threat terrorism and extremism poses to charities, their beneficiaries and their work.

Essex Islamic Academy

The Commission opened a statutory inquiry into the Essex Islamic Academy on 2 October 2017 to investigate serious regulatory concerns relating to Mr Haque’s time at the charity and the charity’s safeguarding practices. The inquiry is examining the administration, governance and management of the charity, including the management and supervision of staff with access to children or young people and the charity’s adherence to its policies and procedures including its Child Protection Policies. The inquiry is also examining the charity’s financial controls. The regulator’s engagement with the Essex Islamic Academy prior to opening the inquiry included corresponding with the trustees and conducting a compliance visit to the charity’s premises in September 2017.

In January 2018, as part of the inquiry, the Commission exercised its temporary and protective powers and issued an order under section 84A of the Charities Act 2011 to direct the trustees of the Essex Islamic Academy not to provide educational classes or any recreational activities which involved regulated activity with those under the age of 18. This restriction and order will apply until the trustees are able to demonstrate that they have complied with a number of urgent actions required by the regulator.

The trustees gave assurances that they had voluntarily stopped regulated activity at the charity. However, given the seriousness of what happened, the regulator exercised its powers and issue an order in any event especially in light of its role to act in the public interest and the need to protect the charity’s beneficiaries.

Further information

The Commission has also exercised its powers, under sections 47 and 52 of the Charities Act 2011, to compel the provision of information and records relating to Mr Haque, and the general governance of the charity more generally.

No complaints were previously raised with the Commission regarding Mr Haque or his roles or employment at any charity.

The Commission is not a prosecuting authority. The investigation of criminal offences is a matter for the police and/or other authorities.

The lead on protecting children at risk are Children’s Services and law enforcement agencies. The Commission is encouraging anyone who may be affected by this case to contact Children’s Services for further advice on 020 8227 3811 in Barking and Dagenham. Social services, supported by the police, are delivering a comprehensive and long-term safeguarding plan to protect and support them.

It is the Commission’s intention, in accordance with its policy, to publish a report after it has concluded the inquiry, detailing what issues the inquiry looked at, what actions were undertaken and what the outcome was. Reports of previous inquiries by the Commission are available on GOV.UK.

If there has been misconduct or mismanagement in a charity or the charity’s beneficiaries, staff, property or assets are at risk, the Commission will take robust action to both protect these and deal with the failings either of its own motion and/or in collaboration with other agencies.

The charity’s details can be viewed on the Commission’s online charity search tool: Essex Islamic Academy.

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Notes to editors

1. The Charity Commission is the independent regulator of charities in England and Wales. To find out more about our work, see our annual report.
2. Search for charities on our online register.
3. The Commission’s role is as charity regulator to oversee charity trustees’ compliance with charity law duties and responsibilities. Regulation of the standards of education in supplementary schools is not within the Commission’s legal remit. In 2015, the Department for Education ran a consultation on registration and inspection of out-of-school educational settings providing intensive tuition, training or instruction to children outside of school.
4. Section 46 of the Charities Act 2011 gives the Commission the power to institute inquiries. The opening of an inquiry gives the Commission access to a range of investigative, protective and remedial legal powers.
5. Mr Haque was employed at the Essex Islamic Academy from 2014 to the date of his arrest (May 2017).
6. The Commission issued the order under section 84A of the Charites Act 2011 on 19 January 2018.
7. Regulated activity is work which involves close and unsupervised contact with vulnerable groups including children. The full legal definition of regulated activity is set out in Schedule 4 of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 as amended by the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012.

The military has been using vehicles and personnel to transport essential NHS staff to hospitals and vulnerable people in the community. The military has also been supporting local police forces to assist people stranded on motorways.

The Defence Secretary has met with soldiers from 1 Royal Irish, who have been carrying out vital work transporting health workers in the Shropshire area, which has been hit by heavy snow.

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said:

Our Armed Forces are doing an incredible job up and down the country, helping the emergency services, local authorities, and the NHS supporting those in need.

From Scotland to Cornwall, more than 100 personnel from across the forces are making a real difference in getting nurses and doctors to vulnerable and elderly patients, and helping rescue those left stranded in freezing conditions.

I pay tribute to their professionalism, dedication and sense of duty. They are proving once again that Britain can always depend on our troops to protect us no matter the time, no matter the place, and no matter the problem.

I witnessed for myself the vital role they are playing in helping the British people during the treacherous weather which has caused so much difficulty for so many people.

I am extremely grateful for all that our personnel are doing and will continue to do over the weekend – and I want to thank them for answering calls for help across the country.

Military assistance to date:

• 20 RAF personnel and 10 4×4 RAF vehicles are transporting health staff to hospitals and communities in Lincolnshire
• 20 Army soldiers and 10 4×4 vehicles are transporting NHS Scotland staff needed to deliver critical care services to and from Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and the Western General Hospital.
• 20 Army soldiers and 10 4x4s are transporting health staff to hospitals and support health workers in visiting vulnerable people in the community in Shropshire.
• 20 Royal Marines and 10 4×4 vehicles are transporting health staff to hospitals and communities in Devon and Cornwall
• The military is assisting Greater Manchester Police to enable them to access and assist motorists on the M62

Military assistance will continue as necessary during the current adverse weather conditions, and will be regularly reviewed in line with the requirement.

There are three UK standby battalions held at high readiness to respond to UK contingencies and emergencies, including support to local authorities. We have the right people with the right training to respond to a range of contingencies.

Defra has today announced the appointment of new non-executive board members to join the departmental Board.

Henry Dimbleby takes on the role of lead non-executive board member with Elizabeth Buchanan, Lizzie Noel, Ben Goldsmith and Colin Day appointed as non-executive board members.

Colin Day will chair the Audit and Risk Assurance Committee from July 2018.

Non-executive board members are senior figures from outside government, appointed to provide challenge to government departments.

As set out in the government’s Code of Practice, non-executive board members should be appointed directly by the Secretary of State and are not civil servants.

Henry Dimbleby

Henry Dimbleby was co-founder of the Leon restaurant chain. He is also co-founder and Director of The Sustainable Restaurant Association and of London Union, which runs some of London’s most successful street food markets. He co-authored The School Food Plan (2013), which set out actions to transform what children eat in schools and how they learn about food.

Henry previously worked as a Strategy Consultant at Bain & Company (1995-2002) where he advised businesses on strategy, performance improvement and organisational design.

Colin Day

Colin Day recently retired as Chief Executive of Essentra plc, a FTSE 250 global business with over 10,000 employees. He was previously Chief Financial Officer at Reckitt Benckiser plc for over 10 years and prior to that at Aegis Group plc.

Colin is currently a non-executive director and Audit Committee Chair at Meggitt plc, a non-executive director and member of the Audit Committee at FM Global Inc., and a member of the Board and Finance Committee of Cranfield University. He has served as a non-executive director on the boards of major UK plcs including Amec Foster Wheeler, WPP, Cadbury, Imperial Brands and Easyjet.

Colin is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and has an MBA from Cranfield School of Management.

Ben Goldsmith

Ben Goldsmith is CEO of Menhaden Capital Management LLP which manages London-listed investment trust Menhaden Capital plc which invests in business opportunities arising from the efficient use of energy and resources. Sectors of focus include industrial process and material efficiency, energy efficiency and storage, power generation and waste and water. Previously Ben co-founded and built WHEB Asset Management, now one of Europe’s leading sustainability-focused fund management businesses.

Ben chairs the Goldsmith family’s philanthropic foundation, the JMG Foundation, which has a focus on the environment. Ben is also a Trustee of one of the UK’s largest philanthropic foundations, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation. In 2003 Ben co-founded the UK Environmental Funders’ Network.

Lizzie Noel

Lizzie Noel has over 20 years’ experience of senior roles in both the commercial and public sectors. She is Chief Executive of Hemera Data Science Ltd, a training and consulting provider. She was on the founding team of training, consulting and technology firm Tribal Group plc, where she was Director of Communications from start up to annual revenues of £200 million and from five to 2,000 employees.

Lizzie was appointed a non-executive board member of the Ministry of Justice in August 2015. She was a former expert advisor at the Department for Education, as well as developing and delivering the Team London programme for the Mayor of London between 2008 and 2012. She is currently a non-executive director of the Sports and Recreation Alliance.

Elizabeth Buchanan

Elizabeth Buchanan is currently a Special Adviser to Waitrose, Dairy Crest plc and the Chime Group, a global sports marketing and communications company. She also manages the family’s 200 acre organic livestock farm in East Sussex which produces pedigree Sussex beef and has been owned by the family since 1976. She is a Trustee of the Prince’s Countryside Fund.

She is a Fellow of the Royal Agricultural Societies, sits on the BBC Rural Affairs Committee, is a Senior Associate of the Cambridge Institute of Sustainability Leadership and a trustee of the Smith School for Enterprise and the Environment at Oxford University.

Elizabeth was formerly Press Secretary to Lady Thatcher (1992-98) and worked for TRH the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall (1998-2008) handling interests in agriculture and the environment, relations with the business community and work through The Prince’s Trust. She was Private Secretary to the Prince of Wales from 2005-2008.

Non-executive board members are Secretary of State appointments drawn from the commercial private sector in accordance with Cabinet Office guidelines.

The appointments are confirmed following a public recruitment exercise.

The Defra Board provides strategic, corporate leadership to the department and has particular responsibility for monitoring performance and delivery. More details about the Defra Board

Recruitment process

A process to recruit new non executives began as incumbents neared the end of their terms.

A fair and open competition for the posts was conducted, with the recruitment and selection process overseen by Sir Ian Cheshire, the Government’s lead non-executive.

An advertisement for the non-executive board members was published on 14 September 2017. Recruitment of non-executive board members followed the procedures set out in the Government’s Code of Good Practice for Corporate Governance in Central Government Departments, and its supporting guidance.

The guidance makes clear:

• Non-executive board members in Whitehall will be appointed by the Secretary of State. The appointment of lead non-executives will be on the approval of the Prime Minister.
• Non-executives on departmental boards are not employees and they do not benefit from temporary civil service status.
• Previous or current political activity should not be an automatic bar to appointment.

Board movements

• Current non-executive board member Paul Rew’s term of office runs until the end of June. He will be replaced by Colin Day, with a period of overlap to ensure continuity on our Audit and Risk Assurance Committee.
• Catherine Doran’s second three-year term expired on 30 November 2017.
• Steve Holliday stepped down from the Defra Board in November and will be replaced by Henry Dimbleby as lead non-executive board member.
• Peter Bonfield remains on the Board.

Political declarations

All appointees have declared any political activity as required.

Ben Goldsmith has made donations to the Conservative Party and the Green Party on an irregular basis since 2004. This has included to the constituency parties of the Environment Secretary (2005) and the Green Party (2009).

Full details are available from the Electoral Commission website.

He is Chairman of the Conservative Environment Network, which promotes environmental issues and their solutions amongst Conservatives. The Conservative Environment Network is not formally affiliated with the Conservative Party.

Lizzie Noel was a Conservative candidate in the 1997 General Election.