Destiny Community Services was registered with the Commission in 2015 and has charitable purposes including the prevention or relief of poverty primarily in Dagenham, Essex.
The charity came to the attention of the Commission’s double-defaulter class inquiry in February 2024 for failing to submit its accounts for the financial years ending 31 December 2021 and 2022. Despite a final reminder being sent to the trustees, the charity entered the double-defaulter inquiry in March 2024 as it failed to submit the outstanding accounts.
As part of the double-defaulter inquiry, the charity was issued an official order by the Commission requiring it to submit its accounts, however the order was not fully complied with and some of the accounts remained outstanding. The accounts that were submitted were found to be non-compliant with the Commission’s Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP).
Since then, the charity has fallen further into default of its accounting requirements and has failed to engage meaningfully with the Commission.
The separate inquiry will examine the extent to which the trustees are complying or have complied with their legal duties in respect of the administration, governance and management of the charity, with particular regard to
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the trustees’ compliance with their statutory accounting and reporting responsibilities.
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the operation of the charity, its viability and the extent to which it is carrying out its purposes for the public benefit.
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whether there has been any unauthorised private benefit to the trustees and/or connected parties including whether conflicts of interest have been properly managed.
The Commission may extend the scope of the inquiry if additional regulatory issues emerge.
It is the Commission’s usual policy, after it has concluded an inquiry, to publish a report detailing the issues examined, any action taken, and the inquiry’s outcomes.
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Notes for Editors
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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. The Commission has a wide range of regulatory powers which it can use to support charities and protect charitable assets. Further information about the Charity Commission and its work is available at The Charity Commission – GOV.UK.
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As part of the double-defaulters inquiry, an order under section 84 of the Charities Act 2011 was issued to the charity’s trustees in March 2024 requiring them to submit to the Commission by 29 April 2024 the outstanding accounts for the financial years ending 31 December 2021 and 31 December 2022 and ensure that the accounts submitted complied with the Commission’s Statement of Recommended Practice (‘SORP’).
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The Commission’s class inquiry for double defaulters examines charities that have failed to submit their annual accounting information for two or more years in the last five years.
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On 5 January 2026 the Charity Commission opened a statutory inquiry into the charity under section 46 of the Charities Act 2011 as a result of its regulatory concerns that there is or has been misconduct and / or mismanagement in the administration of the charity.
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A statutory inquiry is a legal power enabling the Commission to formally investigate matters of regulatory concern within a charity and to use protective powers for the benefit of the charity and its beneficiaries, assets, or reputation. The Commission has not reached any conclusions and the opening of the inquiry is not a finding of wrongdoing.