Taxpayers have been hit with a total bill of more than £50 million for controversial children’s charity Kids Company after a failed court battle left the public to pick up legal costs of almost £10 million.
It followed a three-and-a-half-year case that saw the High Court throw out an attempt to ban the charity’s trustees from holding senior jobs amid claims of mismanagement.
Kids Company collapsed in 2015, despite receiving £42 million from taxpayers as well as the backing of former Prime Minister David Cameron and celebrities such as Hollywood actress Gwyneth Paltrow.
In an earlier case brought by the Official Receiver to block seven ex-executives of Kids Company from future directorsships including their founder Camila Batmanghelidjh, it was unsuccessful
Tens of thousands of pounds were spent by the organisation to help migrants claim benefits. One client was even said to be arranged for sex change surgery.
The Official Receiver failed to block seven previous Kids Company directors from future directorships.
Following the case, taxpayers have been left with an additional bill of £9.5 million, including legal fees of £8.25 million for the trustees of the charity. The Official Receiver’s fees came to £1.2 million.
After Kate Hoey, a former Labour MP raised the matter in the House of Lords, the legal costs were revealed. The Baroness said last night: ‘There is no doubt about it – public money has been wasted. I’m determined to get to the bottom of this.’
A Charity Commission report into Kids Company – which has taken almost as long as the seven-year Chilcot Inquiry into the Iraq War – was due to be published after the trial ended in February.