The Royal National Lifeboat Institution and Age UK are among the charities set to receive £50,000 donations from the Church of Scientology at this year’s annual gathering at their UK headquarters near East Grinstead, Sussex.
The event is set to take place on the weekend of October 31st and marks the 41st anniversary of the founding of the International Association of Scientologists (IAS), Scientology’s official membership body. Culminating in a charity concert on Sunday 2nd November, the controversial church regularly donates money to charities in order to curry favour and distract local residents from horrific stories of abuse told by former members who have since left the organisation.
This year’s chosen charities are the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), Age UK East Grinstead & District, East Grinstead Town Football Club, East Grinstead Cricket Club and Friends of Crowborough Hospital.
The football and cricket clubs, which are local to Scientology’s headquarters at Saint Hill, have recently written letters supporting a major redevelopment of their compound in order to better facilitate future events, despite backlash from residents and concerns from the Town Council about the over-development of countryside designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Historically, the Mayor of East Grinstead has attended the charity concert to present the charities with their cheques however when asked by Scientology Business whether he will be in attendance this year, we did not receive a response.
The RNLI, which was founded in 1824 and provides lifeboat and sea rescue services across the United Kingdom is understood to have received Scientology cheques on several occasions in the past. Former Community Fundraising Manager Peter Tarrant, who now works for Help for Heroes, was pictured on stage alongside RNLI volunteers accepting a cheque at the event in 2012.
The Church of Scientology was found guilty of fraud in France in 1978, with founder L. Ron Hubbard being convicted in absentia. In 1984, High Court Judge Lord Justice Latey ruled the organisation is “sinister, dangerous and harmful” and is “out to capture people, especially children and impressionable young people.” 15 years later, the UK Charity Commission rejected Scientology’s application for charity status on the basis “it does not benefit the public”, a view that was reaffirmed in a statement issued in 2023.
A number of former members have since spoken out against Scientology’s fundraising techniques, describing how parishioners are pressured into making large donations despite being in financial difficulties. In 2019, Chase Bank blocked transactions involving Scientology after it uncovered a scheme whereby church representatives were assisting its members in fraudulently applying for multiple credit cards in order donate to the Church’s activities. Reporting on the ‘Chase Wave’, as it became known, journalist Tony Ortega explained in an article published last year on The Underground Bunker: “It was common for the fundraiser to do all the research on which cards are best for the person and then sign up for several cards all at once — the new card would not get reported to the credit agency until the end of the day, and so different banks would each approve the public for credit without taking into account the new credit just issued by another bank.”
“Chase would actually approve three different cards on the same day and someone had the idea to merge the cards to have one card with a limit three times higher than it should have been.”
In 2017, Queen Victoria Hospital in East Grinstead came under fire for accepting a cheque from Scientology with ex-Liberal Democrat health spokesman Norman Lamb MP telling the BBC “it is completely inappropriate for an NHS trust to accept funds from this organisation.”
A spokesperson for the RNLI told Scientology Business “as a lifesaving charity, the RNLI has a robust Donations Acceptance Policy which ensures donations are appropriately assessed before being accepted or declined. This policy is aligned with the Fundraising Regulator’s guidance. The decision to accept this donation was made after all relevant due diligence was carried out, including the use of our Donation Acceptance Policy.”
“The RNLI’s Donation Acceptance Policy states that donations can only be declined for two reasons: That it would be unlawful to accept the donation; that accepting the donation would be detrimental to the achievement of the purposes of the organisation. Everyone at the RNLI remains focused on our core purpose of saving lives at sea.”
However, the RNLI’s Donation Acceptance Policy explicitly lists “a high-profile individual or company with a poor public reputation due to their business practices or personal conduct which have led to convictions/sanctions/substantial negative media coverage” as an example of behaviour, conduct or operations that conflict with the charity’s constitution.
All donations in excess of £10,000 are reviewed by a dedicated ‘Major Gift Team’ before the decision is made on whether to accept any money and decisions on high-risk/high-value cases are made by the charity’s trustees.
Age UK, which provides advice and friendship services for the elderly, has also been announced as one of this year’s recipients despite multiple reports of wide-scale elder abuse taking place throughout the Church.
In September 2023, former Scientology spokesperson Mike Rinder detailed one case on his podcast of how 77-year old Rosemary Chicwak was pressured into securing debts in excess of $160,000 in order to make large donations to the Church. With the help of the Aftermath Foundation, she subsequently escaped and was given a refund after threatening legal action.
We approached Age UK for comment, and was told by a spokesperson “Age UK East Grinstead and District is an independent organisation, responsible for our own funding and governance.”
“We are reliant on donations from individuals and organisations to fund our vital charitable work supporting older people in the local area. We review all offers of financial or partnership support from companies, organisations, and high net worth individuals on a case by case basis.”
“The older people of East Grinstead remain our priority and our focus is on our work supporting them.”
Despite widespread media coverage and legal rulings confirming widespread abuse, fraud and neglect are prevalent throughout the Church of Scientology, these charities are seemingly turning a blind eye for the sake of a £50,000 donation. The Saint Hill Charity Concert is set to take place on Sunday 2nd November, with protests planned outside the gates of the compound by former Scientologists and local residents concerned about Scientology’s reputation for abuse.
