Charity head’s exit ‘ long overdue’

SIR Alan Parker’s resignation from Save the Children was ‘long overdue’, a former employee said yesterday.

Alexia Pepper de Caires said two executives accused of sexual harassment were allowed to leave ‘under a veil’ and said the charity had failed to accept ‘culpability’.

PR boss Sir Alan quit as head of the charity’s international arm on Thursday after ten years, saying a ‘change is needed’.

It followed the announcement the Charity

Yesterday’s Daily Mail Commission was investigating the handling of allegations against former chief executive Justin Forsyth and policy director Brendan Cox.

Miss Pepper de Caires, who left the charity last year, told Radio 4’s Today show she was ‘very happy’ Sir Alan had quit. But she added: ‘I’m curious about why it’s taken six years for this to happen.’

On Mr Forsyth and Mr Cox, she said: ‘When they finally did leave they were allowed to do so under a veil of, “we would like to move on now”. There was no culpability at the time and I’ve seen very little since then.’

Sir Alan, founder and chairman of PR firm Brunswick, has always denied a coverup of the allegations. Three female employees accused Mr Forsyth of inappropriate behaviour, for which he said he had apologised. Mr Cox stepped down amid harassment allegations, and has admitted he ‘made mistakes’.

Sir Alan was chairman of Save the Children UK when both men left in 2015. He went on to chair the board of Save the Children International.

The charity said that it had since ‘ strengthened our systems for protecting and supporting staff’.