Charity regulator appoints Interim Managers to the London Spiritual Mission

The Charity Commission has appointed interim managers to the unregistered charity London Spiritual Mission, amidst its ongoing inquiry into both it and the connected charity Trust Property Held In Connection With The London Spiritual Mission.

The regulator launched its statutory inquiry into Trust Property Held In Connection With The London Spiritual Mission on 7 December 2023.

In February 2025, the Commission broadened its inquiry to include the London Spiritual Mission, an unregistered charity which the Commission considers ought to have been registered. It was placed under statutory inquiry to investigate concerns relating to the purported dissolution of London Spiritual Mission and the transfer of its assets, including legacy funds, to a Trust of which a private company limited by guarantee is the sole trustee.

The regulator has now appointed interim managers to the London Spiritual Mission to manage the charity to the exclusion of any trustees of London Spiritual Mission.

Interim managers Liz Brownsell and Jennifer Marley of Birketts LLP are tasked with:

• identifying the membership of the charity; and exercising powers to admit or re-admit members.
• reviewing the governance and legal structures of the London Spiritual Mission.
• implementing a governance structure which ensures the charity is operating in line with charity law.
• taking steps to ensure legacy funds and any other identified charitable assets left to the London Spiritual Mission are transferred to the charity or an appropriate charitable structure which shares the charity’s purposes, and meets legal and regulatory requirements.
• clarifying and documenting the London Spiritual Mission’s relationship with the Trust Property charity and any other separate entities involved in the London Spiritual Mission church.
• overseeing and organising any process to recruit trustees to manage the charity or any successor charitable structure moving forward.

The Interim Managers will be consulting former members of the London Spiritual Mission, trustees of the Trust Property charity; the directors and members of the private company and any other relevant stakeholders as appropriate.

The Commission’s inquiry into both charities remains ongoing.  

ENDS

Notes to editors:

1. The Charity Commission is the independent, non-ministerial government department that registers and regulates charities in England and Wales. Its ambition is to be an expert regulator that is fair, balanced, and independent so that charity can thrive. This ambition will help to create and sustain an environment where charities further build public trust and ultimately fulfil their essential role in enhancing lives and strengthening society.
2. The Commission launched its statutory inquiry into Trust Property Held In Connection With The London Spiritual Mission on 7 December 2023. More information on the scope of the inquiry can be found here: Regulator investigates spiritualist charity as disputing trustees and finances spark serious concerns - GOV.UK
3. On 31 July 2026, the inquiry exercised the Commission’s power to appoint  interim managers by Order under section 76(3)(g) of the Act to the exclusion of the charity’s trustees. Once they have completed the scope of their appointment, the interim managers will be discharged by an Order made under section 337(6) of the Act. Information about the Charity Commission’s appointment of interim managers can be found on GOV.UK.
4. The interim managers have been appointed to act to the exclusion of any trustee of London Spiritual Mission only; their appointment does not extend to the trustees of the connected charity, Trust Property Held In Connection With The London Spiritual Mission.

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