Getty ImagesNaomi Campbell’s charity Fashion for Relief was reported by Unicef to a watchdog, it has emerged, after it claimed to be working with the global children’s charity.
Unicef UK told BBC News it had never been a partner of Fashion for Relief, and had not received any funds from an event that was held in 2019 purportedly to raise money for it.
The Charity Commission confirmed it received a “serious incident report” from Unicef in 2022.
On 26 September, the model was banned from being a charity trustee after the regulator found funds were spent on luxury hotels and spa treatments.
Campbell’s spokesperson later told the BBC, on 4 October, she “has never claimed to be a representative of Unicef”.
She also said she has “never engaged in any form of financial misconduct”.
“I’ve just found out today about the findings, and I am extremely concerned,” Campbell told AP news agency on 26 September.
She added she was not the person “in control” of the charity.
Two other trustees, Bianka Hellmich and Veronica Chou, were banned for nine years and four years respectively.
Fashion for Relief held a catwalk show and auction at the British Museum in 2019, which it said would raise money for Unicef and the Mayor’s Fund for London.
But in a statement, Unicef UK said: “We have never held any official partnership with Fashion for Relief and we have never received any funds from the 2019 event.”
Removed from register
The Guardian, which first reported the news, said there were also questions about why the model was billed as a Unicef “envoy” at an official meeting in 2018 with then-foreign secretary Boris Johnson.
Unicef said: “Naomi Campbell has never held an official role or title with Unicef or Unicef UK and we are in touch with the FCDO [Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office] to understand what happened.”
Unicef added that an official ambassadorial role “comes after many years of commitment and support to Unicef”.
The charity said it takes fundraising compliance “very seriously”, and reported Fashion for Relief to the Charity Commission “as per our statutory requirements”.
A Charity Commission spokesperson said Unicef’s report “was considered, alongside wider evidence and information as part of our statutory inquiry into Fashion for Relief”.
That inquiry, which published its findings last week, focused on complaints from the Mayor’s Fund for London and the Save the Children Fund, which said they were owed money from Fashion for Relief events.
The inquiry found Fashion for Relief was not passing on as much money as it was supposed to. Instead, funds were spent on hotels, security and cigarettes for Campbell, and other unauthorised payments to one of her fellow charity trustees.
Fashion for Relief has been removed from the register of charities as a result, and Campbell has been banned from charity involvement for five years.
Charitable causes
Campbell’s spokesperson said on 4 October: “Naomi has never claimed to be a representative of Unicef.
“In 2018, Naomi was invited to meet then foreign secretary Boris Johnson to discuss a new #LeaveNoGirlBehind charitable initiative focused on girls’ education in the Commonwealth.
“Following the meeting, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office drafted and issued its own press release that erroneously referred to Naomi as a Unicef envoy.”
Campbell’s spokesperson said that “for over three decades, she has dedicated herself tirelessly to charitable causes, always with the sole intention of helping others and never for personal gain”.
The statement also said that while the charity Fashion for Relief had been in talks to collaborate with Unicef in 2019, it “did not go ahead”.
It added that discussions continued for a collaboration in 2020, but that “the Covid-19 pandemic occurred and the and the 2020 event did not go ahead”.
Campbell’s spokesperson also said she has “never received payment for her involvement with Fashion for Relief, nor has she billed any personal expenses to the organisation”.
They added: “As previously announced, Naomi has initiated a legal review of the situation, which is currently ongoing.”
This article, originally published on 2 October, was updated on 4 October, to reflect a statement given to the BBC by a representative for Naomi Campbell.