A charity trustee was allegedly misled about her responsibilities, the High Court in London heard on Monday as Naomi Campbell appealed against a five-year ban from running charities. The supermodel, who founded Fashion for Relief in 2005, claims she was the victim of a “concerted deception” by a fellow trustee who advised her to act as little more than a figurehead while taking control of the charity’s legal, regulatory and financial functions.
The alleged deception
In written submissions to the tribunal, Campbell’s barrister, Mr Westwood KC, stated that Bianka Hellmich “held herself out as a lawyer with the expertise to handle the charity’s legal, regulatory and financial functions”. Hellmich, he claimed, advised Campbell that she “could properly confine herself to a limited role assisting with the charity’s fundraising efforts and strategy – in effect, acting as a figurehead – while Ms Hellmich assumed responsibility for those regulatory and financial functions”. Campbell’s legal team further alleges that Hellmich forged Campbell’s signature, created a fake email account to impersonate the model, and received more than £500,000 from charity funds between 2016 and 2021.
Division of responsibilities
The heart of Campbell’s defence rests on the sharply divided roles the two women are said to have agreed. According to Campbell, she was to lend her celebrity profile to fundraising events while Hellmich – who presented herself as a qualified charity lawyer – would oversee all compliance, financial reporting and regulatory filings. Campbell told the tribunal her “only mistake” was trusting Hellmich without verifying her credentials, adding: “I’m here because I have been deceived.” She maintains she never personally benefited from the charity’s funds, stating she has “never undertaken philanthropic work for personal gain, nor will I ever do so”.
The Charity Commission, which imposed the five-year disqualification order in September 2024, painted a starkly different picture of mismanagement. Its investigation found that between April 2016 and July 2022 Fashion for Relief raised nearly £4.8 million but spent only about £389,000 – roughly 8.5 % of total expenditure – on charitable grants. More than £2.75 million went on event charges. The regulator also uncovered that thousands of pounds of charity money had been used for Campbell’s personal expenses, including a three-night hotel stay in Cannes in 2018 that cost approximately $10,400, plus £6,600 on spa treatments, room service and cigarettes. Flights costing €14,800 and hotels costing €9,400 were also noted, with trustees unable to provide sufficient evidence to justify the costs, claiming they were usually met by a donor.
Bianka Hellmich herself was disqualified as a trustee for nine years after the Charity Commission found she had received approximately £290,000 in unauthorised consultancy fees as well as £26,000 annually for travel expenses over two years. A third trustee, Veronica Chou, was disqualified for four years. Neither Hellmich nor Chou have appealed against their bans. The charity, which was founded in the United States in 2005 and registered in the UK in 2015, was dissolved and removed from the Register of Charities in March 2024. Interim managers appointed by the Commission found the charity was effectively insolvent, with insufficient cash to pay creditors, including a £147,000 debt owed to Save the Children that was eventually paid in January 2023.
Lawyer’s advice and next steps
Campbell’s legal team argues that the entire financial collapse stemmed from the advice Hellmich gave her. Mr Westwood KC’s submissions emphasised that Hellmich, by presenting herself as a lawyer with the relevant expertise, effectively persuaded Campbell to step back from oversight. Campbell has also criticised the Charity Commission for failing to conduct its own due diligence on Hellmich. Both Campbell’s team and the Charity Commission have referred the alleged forgery and fraud to the police, who are now investigating.
