Captain Tom’s daughter ordered to tear down pool complex after ‘building it using name of hero’s charity at £1.2m home’
PLANNING chiefs have ordered Captain Tom's daughter to tear down an unauthorised building after plans for a pool complex were rejected.
Hannah Ingram-Moore, 52, and hubby Colin told planners they wanted an office for the charity set up in their father’s name at their £1.2million Bedfordshire home.
But they instead built a 50ft by 20ft pool house with changing rooms, toilets and showers.
The Captain Tom Foundation are no longer receiving donations amid an ongoing investigation by the Charity Commission following concerns the family profited from Tom's name, a spokesperson said.
Plans for the L-shaped building at the seven-bed mansion in Marston Moretaine were given the green light in 2021.
They had applied in their own names for planning — but used the foundation’s name in the design and access and heritage statement, The Sun revealed on Tuesday.
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The statement described the building to be used partly "in connection with The Captain Tom Foundation and its charitable objectives".
A subsequent 2022 retrospective application - which is sought after something has already been built - to extend the building to form a C-shape containing a spa pool, was refused by the planning authority.
This was referred to as The Captain Tom Building and described as "a new building for use by the occupiers", aka Hannah and Colin.
Yesterday, a resident told The Sun: “It feels like they thought their goodwill gave them cover to do whatever they wanted.”
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Other neighbours told they suspected the "ugly" complex "has never just been offices".
Another speculated: "It's definitely high enough to add in a mezzanine if they wanted to. It would be sneaky but they could."
Capt Tom lifted spirits during Covid by walking in his garden in the run-up to his 100th birthday.
He raised almost £39million for the NHS.
The WW2 veteran was knighted, honoured with an RAF flypast and received 225,000 100th birthday cards.
He died of Covid in February 2021.
That August the couple said the space was “urgently required” for presentations and memorabilia and will now appeal the council's order to demolish the building.
A spokesperson for Central Bedfordshire Council said: "An enforcement notice requiring the demolition of the now-unauthorised building was issued.
"And this is now subject to an appeal to the Planning Inspectorate."
Trustees from Tom's charity told The Sun: "At no time were The Captain Tom Foundation’s independent trustees aware of planning permissions made by Mr and Mrs Ingram-Moore purporting to be in the foundation’s name.
"Had they been aware of any applications, the independent trustees would not have authorised them."
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A spokesperson from the charity said: "At this moment in time, the sole focus of The Captain Tom Foundation is to ensure that it cooperates fully with the ongoing Statutory Inquiry by the Charity Commission.
"As a result, The Captain Tom Foundation is not presently actively seeking any funding from donors."
