Great Ormond Street may keep cash raised by Presidents Club

GREAT Ormond Street Hospital is reconsidering whether it should return donations raised by the controversial Presidents Club.

The London children’s hospital had vowed to return the £530,000 it had collected from the club’s charitable trust following the scandal in which female hostesses were groped and sexually harassed by businessmen

But it has now revealed it is in discussions with the Charity Commission about the money, noting that its primary concern is to ensure it has maxi- mum funds to support patients and their families.

A spokeswoman said trustees would make a formal decision when they meet next month.

“Guiding all our thinking is our aim to maximise the support to the hospital and the families it cares for,” she said.

“We are in discussions with the Charity Commission and are scheduled to meet them later this week. We will consider our position at our March Trustee meeting.”

The hospital did not receive donations from the now notorious event at London’s Dorchester hotel last month.

But it had received £530,000 from previous Presidents Club events between 2009 and 2016.

In the wake of the recent scandal, the GOSH Children’s Charity described the alleged behaviour of businessmen who attended the dinner as shocking and said it was returning previous donations “due to the wholly unacceptable nature of the event”. However, it is understood that some of the hospital’s other donors were angry at the decision to return much-needed funds and threatened to withhold their own donations if the charity did not reconsider.

Parents of patients had also criticised the decision.

Two undercover reporters from the Financial Times revealed that hostesses at last month’s Presidents Club event were groped and fondled, with men pawing at them and inviting them to their rooms for sex.

It has been claimed that only one of the four charities which vowed to return Presidents Club donations has so far formally applied to the Charity Commission watchdog to do so.

The Royal Academy of Music is said to have requested permission to return a £10,000 donation made in 2017 as a scholarship for a violin student.

Evelina London children’s hospital and the Clatterbridge Cancer Charity also said they would refund donations.