Decision

Charity Inquiry: National Equine Training Trust

Published 26 May 2021

This decision was withdrawn on 30 May 2023

This report has been archived in line with our policy as it is over 2 years old.

Applies to England and Wales

The charity

National Equine Training Trust (“the charity”) was registered by the Charity Commission on 14 December 1995. It is governed by a declaration of trust dated 9 November 1995. In summary, the charity’s objects are to provide education and training on the care and welfare of equine animals, to prevent / relieve the suffering of such animals and promote their welfare.

On 17 April 2012 the Commission appointed three new trustees to the charity (Trustees A^{[footnote 1]}, B and C) by way of an order made under section 80(2) of the Charites Act 2011 (“the Act”). The order also authorised the transfer of the land known as the Gwendoline Walker Donkey Centre, Windmill Hill, Wrotham Heath, Sevenoaks, TN15 7SX (“the land”) to the newly appointed trustees.

The charity failed to submit accounts to the Commission and was removed from the register of charities (“the register”) on 9 March 2013 on the grounds that it was no longer operating. As a result of the Commission’s Inquiry it was reinstated onto the register on 15 March 2021 following the appointment of new trustees.

The charity’s entry can be found on the register of charities.

Issues under Investigation

On 13 November 2018 an adverse possession claim for the land was made. This means that an individual claimed possession of the land by virtue of the fact that they had been occupying it continuously for a particular period of time (sometimes referred to as “squatters’ rights”). The Commission became aware of this when it was later named as a respondent in the proceedings on 13 September 2019.

The Commission established that the charity’s trustees were not responding to the proceedings and so the interests of the charity were not being represented in the proceedings, resulting in a significant risk of the charity losing its property.

On 2 April 2020 the Commission opened a statutory inquiry into the charity under section 46 of the Act, to examine issues which included:

• whether the charity has continued to operate since it was removed from the register in 2013
• whether the charity had current trustees and, if so, were they willing, able and or capable to take the necessary actions to protect the charity’s property which was subject to the adverse possession claim

The inquiry closed with the publication of this report.

Findings

Whether the charity has continued to operate since it was removed from the register in 2013

The inquiry found that there had been no transactions in or out of the charity’s bank account since 1 January 2015. The charity is unincorporated and as such is unable to hold property in its own name. Land Registry records had not been updated since 8 November 1995 and recorded the land as being vested in the names of two former trustees and Trustee A.

The inquiry’s attempts to contact trustees A, B and C were unsuccessful. The inquiry established that Trustee A died on 9 April 2020 and Trustees B and C resided outside of England and Wales. The inquiry’s attempts to engage with Trustees B and C was unsuccessful.

On 22 February 2021 the inquiry exercised powers under section 80(1)(e) of the Act to remove Trustees B and C, on the basis that they were outside England and Wales and could not be found, and their absence was impeding the proper administration of the charity. On the same day, the Commission appointed two new trustees in their place under section 80(2)(a) of the Act. The charity was subsequently reinstated onto the register on 15 March 2021 as the Commission is now satisfied that it is operating.

If the charity had trustees and if so, were they willing, able and or capable to take the necessary actions to protect the charity’s property which was subject to the adverse possession claim

The inquiry found that the charity had no trustees who were willing and or capable of protecting the land that was subject to the adverse possession proceedings during the time of the claim.

On 8 April 2020 the inquiry exercised powers under section 76(3)(c) of the Act to vest the land in the Official Custodian for Charities. The Official Custodian for Charities acted as a holding trustee of the land. This action ensured that there was someone able and willing to protect the Charity’s interest in the adverse possession claim. The Commission, on behalf of the Official Custodian, intervened in the adverse possession proceedings which were then struck out, thus ensuring the land remained in the charity’s possession.

The trustees appointed by the Commission on 22 February 2021 have confirmed that steps will now be taken to vest the land in the Official Custodian for Charities on a permanent basis.

Conclusions

The Commission concluded that the charity was not operating until 22 February 2021, the date that two new trustees were appointed. The former trustees had mismanaged the charity by failing to manage its property responsibly. As a result of this failure the charity almost lost a valuable piece of land, which was only secured as a result of the Commission’s intervention. The Commission further concluded that if it had been the intention of the former trustees to wind up the charity, then they should have acted to dispose of the land in accordance with the charity’s governing document.

Regulatory Action Taken

The inquiry used information gathering powers on 6 April 2020 when it issued an order under section 47(2)(b) of the Act to the Charity’s bank, to provide information on the charity’s accounts. This action was necessary in order to assess whether the charity was active and what assets it held.

Due to the risk to charity property from the adverse possession proceedings, on 8 April 2020 the inquiry used temporary protective powers to vest the land in the Official Custodian. This was due to the inactivity of trustees and enabled the Commission, on behalf of the Official Custodian, to intervene in the adverse possession proceedings. The Official Custodian – in the absence of trustees who were able to do so – took this step to protect the charity’s property, and the adverse possession claim was subsequently struck out on 21 August 2020. This addressed the immediate threat to the charity’s asset.

On 22 February 2021 Trustee B and Trustee C were removed as trustees under section 80(1)(e) as they were evidently not resident in England or Wales and their absence was impeding the proper administration of the charity. To address this governance vacuum, the inquiry appointed two new trustees under section 80(2)(a) of the Act who are now able to take forward the administration of the charity.

The charity was reinstated onto the register on 15 March 2021.

Issues for the wider sector

The purpose of this section is to highlight the broader issues arising from the Commission’s assessment of the issues raised publicly that may have relevance for other charities. It is not intended as further comment on the charity in addition to the findings and conclusions set out in the earlier sections of this report but is included because of their wider applicability and interest to the charity sector.

Trustees have a responsibility to manage charity property responsibly and to make sure the charity’s assets are only used to support or carry out its purposes. Trustees must also avoid exposing the charity’s assets to undue risk. Trustees must ensure appropriate procedures and safeguards are put in place and should take reasonable steps to ensure that these are followed; otherwise, trustees risk making charity property vulnerable and being in breach of their duty.

If a charity becomes inactive, it must be wound up properly in accordance with its governing document. Charity property must also be disposed of correctly in accordance with charity law.

Where a trustee is resident outside of England and Wales and their absence impedes the proper administration of the charity, the Commission may take action to remove them.

1. Trustee A resigned in 2008 and was re-appointed in 2012. ↩